How WHSmith went from £280million in the red to Britain's favourite

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.

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