Members of the public walk past a branch of WH Smith Plc in Orpington on January 23, 2025 in London, England.
Dan Kitwood | News Getty Images | Getty Images
British retailer WH Smith is looking to sell its historic high street to focus on a travel trade unit in the latest hit to the UK retail industry.
The 232-year-old retailer said on Monday it was exploring the sale of more than 520 high street stores, which sell newspapers, books and stationery, confirming reports over the weekend that talks were under way.
“WHSmith confirms that it is exploring potential strategic options for this profitable and cash-generating part of the Group, including a possible sale,” the company said in a statement on the London Stock Exchange’s website.
“There can be no certainty that any agreement will be reached and further updates will be provided as appropriate,” it added.
WH Smith — part of the FTSE 250 — has doubled its UK travel unit in recent years, with more than 580 travel stores in airports, hospitals, train stations and motorway service areas. Its wider global travel business has 1,200 stores in 32 countries, which the company says now account for three-quarters of the group’s revenue and 85% of trading profits.
Investec’s Kate Calvert said in a note on Monday that the plans were “not a surprise” given the group’s investment in its travel operations. In emailed comments to CNBC, Calvert added that WH Smith investors should be encouraged by the move.
“You own WH Smith for the travel business. Travel is an attractive long-term structural growth market. If you get rid of the High Street, you should get a higher rating over time,” said Calvert, head of retail and consumer research at Investec. CNBC via email.
Shares in WH Smith rose about 5.5% after Monday’s announcement, after falling nearly 11% in 2024. They last traded 2.9% higher.
The move comes as pressure mounts on the UK retail industry amid the steady growth of e-commerce.
Changes in internal politics contributed costs of doing business in the UKwith the government in October announcing increases to the UK minimum hourly wage and National Insurance (NI) payroll tax paid by employers.
High street supermarket chain Sainsbury’s announced on Thursday that it plans to cut 3,000 jobs in the UK. It followed warnings from major retailers earlier this month that they could be forced to cut thousands of jobs this year to cover the cost of higher taxes, according to poll by the British Retail Consortium.
“The retail sector has experienced unprecedented operating costs [operational expenditure] inflation in recent years from increases in the national minimum wage and rates,” Calvert said.
“Government increases NMW & NI [national minimum wage and national insurance] they are a big headwind and very useless. Traders will have to close unprofitable stores,” she added.
