2.0.0.10 false Equity Based Employee Benefit Plans 1050 - Disclosure - Equity Based Employee Benefit Plans true false false false 1 usd $ false false USD Standard http://www.xbrl.org/2003/iso4217 USD iso4217 0 USDPerShare Divide http://www.xbrl.org/2003/iso4217 USD iso4217 http://www.xbrl.org/2003/instance shares xbrli 0 2 Equity Based Employee Benefit Plans 0 spls_EquityBasedEmployeeBenefitPlansDisclosureAbstract spls false na duration string No definition available. false false false false false true false false false false false false 1 false false false false 0 0 false false false No definition available. false 3 Equity Based Employee Benefit Plans 1 us-gaap_DisclosureOfCompensationRelatedCostsShareBasedPaymentsTextBlock us-gaap true na duration string No definition available. false false false false false false false false false false false terselabel false 1 false false false false 0 0 <table style="font-size:10pt; font-family:'Times New Roman',times,serif;"> <tr> <td> Note E Equity Based Employee Benefit Plans   Staples offers its associates share ownership through certain equity based employee benefit plans, including the Amended and Restated 1998 Employee Stock Purchase Plan and the Amended and Restated International Employee Stock Purchase Plan (collectively the Employee Stock Purchase Plans), and the Amended and Restated 2004 Stock Incentive Plan.   Under the Employee Stock Purchase Plans, U.S. and International associates may purchase shares of Staples common stock at 85% of the lower of the market price of the common stock at the beginning or end of an offering period through payroll deductions in an amount not to exceed 10% of an employees annual base compensation.  Under the Amended and Restated 2004 Stock Incentive Plan, the Company grants restricted stock and restricted stock units (collectively, Restricted Shares) and nonqualified stock options to associates.  The Restricted Shares are restricted in that they are not transferable (i.e. they may not be exercised or sold) until they vest. The nonqualified stock options cannot be exercised until they vest.  Vesting of the Restricted Shares and nonqualified stock options occurs over different periods, depending on the terms of the individual award, but expenses relating to these awards are all recognized on a straight line basis over the applicable vesting period.   In connection with its equity based employee benefit plans, Staples included $33.8 million and $35.3 million in compensation expense for the first quarter of 2010 and the first quarter of 2009, respectively.   As of May 1, 2010, Staples had $208.9 million of nonqualified stock options and Restricted Shares to be expensed over the period through March 2014.  The Company had 42.7 million stock options outstanding, of which 29.4 million were exercisable at May 1, 2010.  The intrinsic value was $175.1 million for the outstanding nonqualified stock options and $154.0 million for the exercisable nonqualified stock options. The intrinsic value of the nonqualified stock options is the amount by which the market value of the underlying stock exceeds the exercise price of an option.</td></tr></table> Note E Equity Based Employee Benefit Plans   Staples offers its associates share ownership through certain equity based employee benefit plans, false false false Disclosure of compensation-related costs for share-based compensation which may include disclosure of policies, compensation plan details, allocation of stock compensation, incentive distributions, share-based arrangements to obtain goods and services, deferred compensation arrangements, employee stock ownership plan details and employee stock purchase plan details. Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (FAS) -Number 123R -Paragraph 64, 65, A240 Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher AICPA -Name Statement of Position (SOP) -Number 93-6 -Paragraph 53 Reference 3: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher SEC -Name Staff Accounting Bulletin (SAB) -Number Topic 14 false false 1 2 false UnKnown UnKnown UnKnown false true