staplesIt’s not just tech giants with names like Google, Facebook and Groupon which are expanding their operations in Seattle.

Here comes Staples, the brick-and-mortar retailer which announced Thursday that it plans to establish a new development center in Seattle in the coming months, with room for as many as 50 employees in downtown Seattle, the company says. It marks the company’s first West Coast office dedicated to e-commerce and engineering, with the office working on efforts related to big data and personalization, among other things.

“Staples is changing the way customers shop online,” said Faisal Masud, executive vice president, global e-commerce, Staples in a press release. “Seattle is an innovation hub rivaling Silicon Valley and features some of the world’s biggest technology companies. Staples new Development Center will allow us to tap into the wide range of talented engineering and e-commerce professionals on the West Coast.”

Seattle certainly has a history of cutting-edge companies in retail, including Nordstrom, REI and Starbucks. All of those companies also are trying to make a big impact in e-commerce. Staples likely will attempt to pull talent from those organizations, as well as the 800-pound gorilla in Amazon.com.

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