- Business
- Indigo Books & Music Inc. Indigo Books & Music Inc. (IDGBF) operates as Canada's leading book and lifestyle retailer, offering a curated assortment of books, gifts, home decor, wellness products, fashion items, paper goods, baby products, kids toys, stationery, magazines, and general merchandise through physical stores and its online platform at chapters.indigo.ca; the company maintains approximately 8 million book titles available online with a curated selection in stores, supports eReading via integration with the Kobo service, and features proprietary brands such as !ndigoKids for childrens books, specialty toys, and gifts, !ndigoBaby for baby apparel, bath items, nursery decor, and plush toys, and IndigoLife for select lifestyle products. Indigo Books & Music Inc. (IDGBF) runs 89 superstores averaging over 22,000 square feet under the Chapters and Indigo banners, designed as cultural destinations often including Starbucks cafes, alongside 83 small-format stores under Coles and Indigospirit banners located in shopping centers, airports, and business districts; operations span all ten Canadian provinces and one territory, with additional retail presence in the United States via a wholly-owned subsidiary operating one store in Short Hills, New Jersey. The company engages customers through its plum rewards program, featuring free plum tier for points accumulation and plum+ tier for enhanced savings, free shipping, and exclusive events; it also supports literacy via the Indigo Love of Reading Foundation, which has donated over $35 million to more than 3,000 elementary schools since 2004. Founded in 1996 by Heather Reisman with the first store opening in Burlington, Ontario in 1997, Indigo Books & Music Inc. (IDGBF) emerged in its current form in August 2001 through a merger with Chapters Inc. and is headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, employing approximately 4,200 people. In a major strategic shift, the company completed a privatization transaction on May 31, 2024, with Trilogy Investments L.P. via a plan of arrangement, resulting in the delisting of its common shares from the Toronto Stock Exchange on June 4, 2024, cessation as a reporting issuer on June 11, 2024, and transition to a private entity no longer subject to public market requirements, enabling focused execution of its transformation strategy aimed at growth, profitability, and enhanced customer engagement.