Current location:Earthly Edition news portal > business
From flop to one
Earthly Edition news portal2024-05-07 19:01:51【business】6People have gathered around
IntroductionIt went from being a much-loved part of every British high street to gaining a reputation for disorg
It went from being a much-loved part of every British high street to gaining a reputation for disorganised stock, tatty interiors and rip-off prices.
But WHSmith has risen from the dead after its shift to being a 'one-stop shop' for travel essentials paid off.
Now - after the pandemic pushed the retailer £280million into the red - the thriving thriving business is plotting more store openings across train stations, airports and hospitals.
WHSmith is in its 'strongest ever position as a global travel retailer,' according to Chief executive Carl Cowling, with the UK travel business increasing its trading profit by nearly a fifth.
Total group revenues were eight per cent higher in the six months to the end of February, compared with the previous year.
The retailer said it was benefiting from an increase in consumers travelling, particularly in large stores at London Heathrow, London Gatwick and Birmingham airports.
Established in 1792, WHSmith's first shop was opened by Henry Walton Smith and his wife Anna
WHSmith is plotting more store openings across train stations, airports and hospitals
WHSmith opened its first travel retail store in London's Euston station in 1848
WHSmith was first opened in 1792 by Henry Walton Smith
WHSmith was once a much-loved part of every British high street
It is expecting to open around 110 new stores this financial year, including more than 50 in North America.
But WHSmith - which first opened in 1792 - was voted Britain's worst or second worst high street retailer for nine straight years from 2011 to 2019, in a poll conducted by consumer watchdog Which?
Customers became exacerbated by the chain's declining state, with its seemingly random stock, shabby carpets and disorderly presentation.
One customer tweeted several years ago: 'Serious question: How has WHSmith survived? Am I missing something positive about what it does? Overpriced goods, tatty stores, many rivals.'
Another said: 'It sells overpriced products from tatty shops with little or no customers.'
In November 2020, the retailer announced it would close 25 high street stores, affecting nearly 200 jobs, after the pandemic pushed the business £280million into the red, The Guardian reported.
Customers became exacerbated by the chain's declining state, with its seemingly random stock, shabby carpets and disorderly presentation
WHSmith's are typically found on high streets, as well as in stations and airports
A WHSmith delivery van is seen in 1899, more than a century after the first store opened
The chain said it was likely to permanently close the stores after sales in its high street business fell by 19 per cent.
The business's previously successful travel outlets – in stations, airports and hospitals – were even more affected, with a recorded 43 per cent slide in sales in the year to 31 August, according to The Guardian.
The company said at the time: 'While this is not an easy decision to make for our colleagues or the communities we serve, it is vital we retain a strong and cash generative high street portfolio going forward.'
Established in 1792, WHSmith's first shop was opened by Henry Walton Smith and his wife Anna in Little Grosvenor Street, London.
A few decades later WHSmith opened its first travel retail store in London's Euston station in 1848.
Now a leading global retailer in news, books and more, the chain has more than 1,700 stores in more than 30 countries.
MailOnline has contacted WHSmith for comment.
Address of this article:http://janmayen.brittasbay.org/html-76e199731.html
Very good!(47)
Related articles
- Tom Brady roast: Netflix live event features Robert Kraft and Bill Belichick reunion
- Olivia Williams opens up on 'harrowing' experience as guest star on season four finale of Friends
- Olivia Williams opens up on 'harrowing' experience as guest star on season four finale of Friends
- Hamas says 19 killed in Israeli shelling near Gaza City, Israel denies
- Relegation
- Changing course, Florida prosecutor suspended by DeSantis to seek reelection
- China, Nauru gathering momentum for growth of ties
- China will not allow Philippines to act willfully on South China Sea issue: Military spokesperson
- With college football drama behind him, Devontez Walker eager to show his talent with Baltimore
- Malta's new president takes office
Popular articles
Recommended
Former Alabama star player, athletic director Hootie Ingram dies at age 90
UN Security Council revisits Palestine's UN membership application
Pochettino says Chelsea players behaved like ‘kids’ when squabbling over who took a penalty
Charlize Theron brings along adorable daughter August, 7, to sit front row at Dior's pre
Liz Hurley's nephew
South Africa's former president Zuma survives road crash
Charges against Trump and Jan. 6 rioters are at stake
Two killed in shooting at Ferguson, Missouri, gas station; officer fired shots
Links
- Wisconsin Supreme Court to hear arguments in Democratic governor's suit against GOP
- CERAWeek kicks off, focusing on global multidimensional energy transition
- French police evict hundreds from abandoned Paris warehouse ahead of Olympics
- Timothee Chalamet carries a guitar case as he films scenes with co
- Lynn earns his first win in second stint with Cards, who beat A's before season
- Protests, heightened terror threat mean tight security at Eurovision Song Contest in Sweden
- UN appeals for $2.8 billion to help 3 million Palestinians in desperate need of food and other aid
- Japan records a trade deficit for the third straight fiscal year despite recovering exports
- India elections 2024: Colorful roadshows, rallies mark start of poll season
- Solomon Islanders vote in key election for their country, region — Radio Free Asia