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Janie Millican and John Thayer picked an odd time to get into the office supply business. It was 2007, the beginning of the recession.

Plus, the market was already dominated by big names like OfficeMax, Office Depot and Staples.

Yet Indian Country Office Products has not only survived, but flourished. Millican and Thayer provide office supplies for the Bonneville Power Administration and the Port of Portland. They also won the office supply contract for the newly refurbished Edith Green-Wendell Wyatt Federal Building.

Millican said such success is not easy. “There’s not a lot of new business out there, but we’re very competitive,” she said.

And local companies seem to like the idea of dealing locally. “They can call the owners and get an answer in five minutes rather than three weeks,” Millican said.

Thayer had been dealing in office supplies for years when he decided to go into business with Millican, who already owned Indian Country Interior Solutions, offering furnishings for hotels, offices and casinos.

“It just seemed it would go hand-in-hand,” Millican said.

Thayer and Millican began working on the federal building project last year. “Flexibility, customer service, competitive pricing, good product selection and next-day delivery are key qualities of a successful supplier to a large and busy construction jobsite office,” Millican said.

Project coordinators ordered paper, pens, markers, clips, cameras and files from the company’s website. All were delivered quickly, Millican said.

“Personal attention, keen focus on detail and the ability to listen to what clients want are key to Indian Country Office Products’ growth,” she said.