Officeworks

There was always something magical about going to officeworks when I was a kid — new pens and books and pencil cases had such a specific smell to them. We used to race office chairs and play games on the computers. Now I can see why my parents weren’t as eager to hang around.
The store was dirty and disorganised, and the shopping carts are bulky and awful at turning, but there’s always something still a bit exciting to me. I always walk out with an inordinate amount of stupid pens. The staff are just as disgruntled as I remember, though.
Tip: if you’re chasing a diary with dates have fun trying to get one any time apart from December and January. Found that out the hard way. Great deals on printers though.

So I’m on a bit of a downsize and organisation kick at the moment and surprise surprise Officeworks has some really great storage options (Check out their desk organisation section). I’ve been to the Milton store a number of times and have always found it to be, well stocked, neat, tidy and with a good amount of staff to help but not fawn over you. There is parking out the front and you can generally get a park with ease. I do love that they now have an option for you to purchase online and then pick up in store. I did brave the back to school crowd and found that THIS Officeworks was not overly crowded or busy, which was fantastic. This office works is definitely my pick. They also have in store printing, internet and all sorts of stationary, study and office needs. They can be a little bit expensive and while you may find a better (cheaper) deal elsewhere I do like that they have pretty much most of what you will need in the one spot.

I could give it up anytime I want to. I could. I totally could. I could walk past a stationery store and not even feel a flinch of desire. If I wanted to.
Who am I kidding? I’m attracted to stationery and office supplies like a moth to the flame and Officeworks is no exception. From your standard mundane office supplies to more niche stationery from their Philosophy range and so many pens (oh the pens!), your inner stationery nerd will be right at home.
It’s a warehouse of office supply dreams and if you don’t walk in armed with a firm shopping list there is a 99% chance you’ll be lured by much more than you needed and potentially leave without the item you originally came for.
In all seriousness, Officeworks Milton is a great spot to fulful all your stationery, office supply or school needs. Notebooks, pens, digital cameras, computers, desks, photo printing they have it covered. You can even buy bulk Arnott’s Family Assortment biscuits.
A friendly tip: pull up banners. Provide them the artwork they’ll print a pull-​up banner for you for under $ 100.

This place is like a giant, shiny warehouse filled with so much stuff it would be a stretch to associate all of it with an office. Or rather, if someone out there had the largest, most pimped-​out office in the world (Trump?), they could shop here.
It’s useful the range is so large that it includes couches, ones that you can generally sit down on (or even lie down on; yes, I’ve done it) when you’re over the whole trip and your companions are still roaming the aisles. Because it’s a warehouse however you immediately feel the endless space and air conditioning as a welcome treat when you step inside. The scattered staff are friendly if you go up to them, but otherwise they keep to themselves, creating a feeling of having the place to yourself. It’s a travesty that they don’t have shopping trolleys at Officeworks, because these long, spacious warehouse aisles were made for trolley racing. I suspect if they had trolleys I could get away with it, but maybe immature people like me are the reason they don’t have trolleys in the first place.
I won’t rant on about the product range; most people are familiar with it and you can see it on their website. I will say that I generally find items such as general stationary (pens, post-​its, sticky tape, Blu Tack etc) to be more expensive than they should be. (Boy, are they laid out prettily, though. Anyone who secretly enjoys stationary will know what I mean.) Even the impulse-​purchase reduced items at the counter (USBs) are more expensive than the same thing from Woolworths.
I did get to buy some iron-​on transfer paper here, though, and for that I’m grateful. It was the only place in inner-​city Brisbane the day I visited that seemed to stock it, and I needed to make a t-​shirt for Halloween.