ALL CHANGE
WHSmith update as sale ‘on track’ for this month before it disappears from high streets
The stores will reopen under a new brand name in weeks
THE sale of 480 WHSmith stores is set to complete this month before the brand disappears from the high street for good.
The deal to sell off the branches to Hobbycraft owner Modella Capital is set to be finalised by the end of June, WHSmith said.
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The £76million deal, which was agreed in March, will see the iconic brand name disappear from high streets.
The stores will be rebranded as TGJones and reopen under this name from July, WHSmith said.
All of the 480 WHSmith stores and 5,000 staff working for the high street arm of the retail chain will move under Modella Capital's ownership as part of the deal.
When WHSmith struck the deal to sell off its high street arm to Modella, Carl Cowling, chief of the high street brand, described the move as a "pivotal moment".
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It comes as the retailer shifts its focus away from the troubled high street and towards its travel arm.
He said in March: "We have a highly successful Travel business, operating in fast growing markets in 32 countries and we are constantly innovating to deliver strong returns and meet our customers' and partners' needs.
"Our Travel business currently accounts for around 75% of the Group's revenue and 85% of its trading profit."
The retail chain currently has over 580 travel stores across airports, hospitals, railway stations and motorway service areas which will continue to live on.
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Last January, the stationer said it wanted to open 15 new shops in airports, railway stations and hospitals before the end of 2024.
This came as part of plans to open 110 new branches worldwide.
WHSmith sells 500 UK shops
Meanwhile, in November, WHSmith also said it would close up to 20 stores each year over the following three years.
The vast majority of these branches are on the high street.
The sale of WHSmith's high street arm to Modella came amid interest from Alteri Investors and HMV owner Doug Putman.
Modella has a history of snapping up iconic British stores, and last August bought out arts and crafts retail chain Hobbycraft.
HISTORY OF WHSMITH
THE first WHSmith’s store was opened all the way back in 1792 by Henry Walton Smith and his wife Anna in Little Grosvenor Street, London.
In 1848, the brand opened its first ever retail store in London’s Euston station, kicking starting a long relationship with travel hubs across the globe.
Over the years, the brand has sold a variety of products including everything from Vinyl records to DVD's and computer games.
But it has always been best known for its wide variety of books, stationary and sweets.
In February, it also snapped up struggling retailer The Original Factory Shop.
TROUBLE ON THE HIGH STREET
The sale of 480 WHSmith stores comes just a couple of years after Wilko collapsed.
The collapse led to the closure of hundreds of shops and thousands of staff losing their jobs.
The high street has struggled more broadly following the 2008 financial crisis.
Higher inflation in recent years has dented shoppers' purse strings as well.
A recent report from PwC noted a "continued move away from the high street" by retailers in 2024 with shops outside of town and city centres seeing less closures and more openings.
It said this was being driven by both leisure outlets and larger retailers shifting from high streets to retail parks which offer shoppers "greater convenience".
The Centre for Retail Research said more than 13,000 high street stores shut in 2024, with more to come in 2025.
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The centre's analysis found that 13,479 stores, the equivalent of 37 each day, shut their doors for good over the calendar year.
Of these, around 11,340 independent shops were shut during the year - a 45.5% jump against 2023.
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