Indigo

The company was founded in 1996 by Heather Reisman, who is married to Gerry Schwartz, majority owner and CEO of Onex Corporation.

The company's first big-box bookstore initially called "Indigo Books, Music & More", was opened in Burlington, Ontario on September 4, 1997. With financing from Onex Corporation, Indigo bought Chapters, their largest Canadian competitor, in 2001 and continues to operate many stores under the Chapters banner. Indigo also gained the ownership of the Coles chain of small-format bookstores, which was also owned by Chapters.

Indigo closed three high-profile stores in Toronto in the spring of 2014, including the World's Biggest Bookstore, which it acquired when it bought Chapters. In June 2014, Reisman said the company was headed into a new phase, selling a much higher percentage of non-book items.

In late 2017, it was announced that it would expand to the United States, with its first location opening in The Mall at Short Hills in October 2018.

In September 2022, Reisman stepped down as CEO and became executive chair, with Peter Ruis being named CEO.

In February 2023, Indigo was the victim of a ransomware attack that rendered them unable to process non-cash transactions, returns, and gift cards for approximately four days. They got back their card transactions through a wireless pinpad, but the rewards system was still down. Online shopping remained unavailable for almost two months. While Indigo has assured the public that customer data was not compromised, they notified current and former employees that employee data had been. LockBit has claimed responsibility for the attack. Indigo made the decision not to pay the ransom due to the possibility that the money would be used to fund terrorism or organized crime.

In June 2023, Reisman announced her retirement, effective August 22, 2023. This came after four out of ten board members stepped down, citing loss of confidence and mistreatment from the board leadership.

In September 2023, founder Heather Reisman returned as chief executive officer, after Peter Ruis abruptly resigned earlier in the month.

The company sells books, magazines, gifts, and toys through its website and in its stores. Its banners currently include Indigo Books & Music, Chapters, Coles, SmithBooks, IndigoSpirit, and The Book Company (small format).

Indigo began a partnership with Apple and iUniverse publishing in the 2010s. Indigo also manufactures its own brand of products, called IndigoLife. In addition, the chain's Indigo Trusted Advisor Program offers book recommendations from experts in health, finance, and the environment, such as David Bach and David Suzuki.

Criticism and controversies

Charity scandal

CBC Marketplace showed that Indigo is doubly profiting from its own charity "Love of Reading Foundation": the charity forced schools to buy books only from Indigo at full retail price. Other vendors usually sell to charities at wholesale price.[1] Then, the charity used the profits to get charity tax refund for the donation to its own charity. Based on data provided by the CBC documentary, the profits obtained is almost equal to the charity it gives if the tax refunds is taken into account.

Product removal

In 2001, Indigo removed Adolf Hitler's Mein Kampf from the shelves. In 2006, Indigo decided not to sell the June issue of Harper's Magazine, which reprinted the controversial cartoons of the Muslim prophet Muhammad that had led to violent demonstrations around the world. Indigo also did not distribute the issue of Western Standard which reprinted and discussed those same cartoons. The company has also reportedly refused to stock several titles by David Icke, and firearms magazines.

Competitive position

The Indigo/Chapters chain has been criticized over what some perceive as a virtual monopoly over retail-based book sales in Canada. In 2002, the company strongly opposed the entry of Amazon into the Canadian marketplace with accusations the U.S.-based company was skirting regulations about foreign ownership of Canadian booksellers.

Indigo's expansion has been blamed, among other factors, for the financial difficulties of some independent booksellers in Canada. In particular, its rise coincided with the bankruptcy of Lichtman's, once Canada's largest independent bookseller.