Accounting Policies

6 Months Ended

Aug. 01, 2015

Accounting Policies [Abstract]

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

In May 2014, a pronouncement was issued that creates common revenue recognition guidance for U.S. GAAP and International Financial Reporting Standards. The new guidance supersedes most preexisting revenue recognition guidance. The core principle of the guidance is that an entity should recognize revenue to depict the transfer of promised goods or services to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration to which the entity expects to be entitled in exchange for those goods or services. The new standard was originally scheduled to be effective for annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2016, including interim periods within that reporting period. In July 2015, the Financial Accounting Standards Board decided to defer the effective date by one year, and as a result the new standard will be effective for annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2017, and interim periods therein, with an option to adopt the standard on the originally scheduled effective date. Staples intends to adopt the new guidance in the first quarter of fiscal 2018. The new standard is to be applied either retrospectively to each period presented or as a cumulative-effect adjustment as of the date of adoption. The Company is currently evaluating the impact of the new pronouncement on its financial statements.

In April 2015, a pronouncement was issued that requires debt issuance costs related to a recognized debt liability be presented in the balance sheet as a direct deduction from the carrying amount of that debt liability, consistent with debt discounts. The guidance is effective for fiscal years, and interim periods within those fiscal years, beginning after December 15, 2015. Early adoption is permitted and retrospective application is required. The Company adopted this standard in the first quarter of fiscal 2015. The condensed consolidated balance sheet as of January 31, 2015 included in these interim financial statements reflects a restatement to reclassify unamortized debt issuance costs of $1 million from Prepaid and other current assets and $4 million from Other assets to Long-term debt, net of current maturities. For debt issuance costs paid to secure revolving credit facilities, under its policy the Company will continueto present such costs as assets on the balance sheet.

Fair Value Measurement, Policy

ASC Topic 820 establishes a fair value hierarchy that prioritizes the inputs used to measure fair value. The hierarchy gives the highest priority to quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities (Level 1 measurement), then priority to quoted prices for similar instruments in active markets, quoted prices for identical or similar instruments in markets that are not active and model-based valuation techniques for which all significant assumptions are observable in the market (Level 2 measurement), then the lowest priority to unobservable inputs (Level 3 measurement).

The fair values of cash and cash equivalents, receivables, accounts payable, accrued expenses, other current liabilities and short-term debt approximate their carrying values because of their short-term nature.