The Office Spot

"There's nothing more green than having a sustainable, stable local economy." - Ray Palacio

Ray Palacio is one of the survivors in his industry.  He went to work for independently-owned Pillsbury Office Supplies of Walnut Creek in 1976, right out of college.  In 1978, Mr. Pillsbury opened a branch in Healdsburg.  In the early 80s, Ray moved from his position as purchasing manager to become one of four partners, and in 1990 moved to Healdsburg with his wife and daughters.

It was about this time that the big box stores began to appear, wiping out 80 percent of independently-owned local businesses within five years.  "It was an extremely difficult challenge, maintaining a service-oriented business in a price conscious market, competing for business with what we called "the category killers" that moved in with millions of outside investment dollars."

Ray and his family were among the 20 percent of office supply businesses that survived.  In 1999, The Office Spot transitioned from a traditional retail business on the plaza to a commercial enterprise with a business-to-business focus.  "It's been very demanding and very rewarding to address the specific needs of small to medium size businesses, leveraging technology to our clients' advantage and offering service they'd never get from a big box store."  Ray's mission now is to help other local businesses survive difficult times, advising them how they can trim their office supply costs and use customized ordering systems to increase efficiency.

The oldest of Ray's three daughters comes in once a week to drive the public relations dimension of his business (and to fortify herself for the remaining six days of the week enjoying three children under 6 years old), and his wife is a nurse at the local hospital.  Ray and his family love their community.  Ray is committed to seeing it thrive, and is excited about joining GoLocal in building a more resilient Sonoma County.