Office Depot CEO Roland Smith to Retire

Office Depot said on Monday Chief Executive Roland Smith would retire, three months after the second-largest U.S. office supplies retailer and bigger rival Staples abandoned their planned merger.

The company also said it would consolidate its retail, contract, ecommerce and marketing operations under a newly created role of chief operating officer, North America.

Office Depot said 62-year-old Smith, appointed to the top job in November 2013, would continue until a replacement was found.

The company said it expected to name a new CEO by the end of the first quarter of 2017.

The office supplies retailer has been struggling with seven quarters of falling sales amid strong competition from online giant Amazon.com.

Office Depot said earlier this month it would shut 300 more stores in the next three years in addition to the 400 stores it had already closed.

The company's planned merger with Staples was thwarted by antitrust regulators in May.

Staples Chief Executive Ron Sargent has also stepped down.

(Reporting by Abhijith Ganapavaram and Subrat Patnaik in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'Silva and Sriraj Kalluvila)