Huge high street chain to shut UK store TODAY after announcing 20 shop closures after sale
A HUGE high street retailer is set to shut one of its locations for good today.
The store will shut up shop as the company rebrands its sites across the country.
WHSmith has shut 20 stores this year already with its location on Midland Road, Bedford, set to follow suit today, July 5.
It comes after the firm was bought out by Hobbycraft owner Modella Capital in March.
The firm has not yet confirmed how many jobs will be affected by the closure.
As part of the takeover deal all 464 WHSmith stores are rebranding to TGJones.
WHSmith has been a staple of the British high street for some 200 years but came on hard times in recent years.
The Modella Capital takeover has now been completed with the WHSmith website rebranded.
There are over 1,100 WHSmith stores in the UK which will be either closed down or rebranded under the new ownership.
Plans to open more than 100 new stores in airports, railways and hospitals are underway, these stores will not rebrand and remain as WHSmith.
A WHSmith spokesperson said: “We can confirm that the WHSmith store in Bedford will be closing in July.
“It is no longer sustainable to continue to trade from this location and the decision has been taken to close the store as a result of the forthcoming lease expiry.
“We are disappointed to be losing our presence in Bedford and we would like to thank all our customers for their support and for shopping with us.
“We are also extremely grateful for the commitment of our in store colleagues who we will support with this transition and redeploy to nearby stores, where possible.”
Modella have now put in planning applications with a number of local councils to change the signs on WHSmith stores.
WHSmith customers have also started to receive emails from TGJones, leading to some confusion.
Several stores that are closing are understood to be holding closing down sales.
The end of WHSmith on the high street
The closures mark the beginning of the end of a 233-year stint on the high street for WHSmith.
Earlier this year, it put its entire high street estate up for sale as it focuses instead on its more profitable travel arm.
Its remaining 480 high street stores were snapped up by Hobbycraft owner Modella Capital last month as part of a £76million deal.
The move saved the jobs of roughly 5,000 employees.
However, the famous WHSmith name is set to be lost to the high street as the shops will be gradually rebranded to TGJones.
WHSmith stores will remain in airports, train stations and hospitals, and the retailer is planning to expand here.
The brand opened its first shop in 1792 in Little Grosvenor Street, London, later becoming the UK’s main newspaper distributor.
WHSmith stores that have closed
A total of 20 WHSmith stores shut this year ahead of the rebrand.
The retailer’s Bedford site is set to close on July 5.
The store in the Frenchgate Centre in Doncaster closed on May 31, while the Stockton branch also shut on May 17.
Branches in Halstead and Woolwich shut on April 12, and Halesowen and Diss followed on April 19.
Just a week later, stores in Newport and Haverhill also pulled down the shutters.
Here’s the full list of closures this year:
The full list of store closures include:
- Bournemouth Old Christchurch Road, Dorset – January 18
- Luton, Bedfordshire – January 18
- March, Cambridgeshire – January 25
- Basingstoke, Hampshire – February 1
- Long Eaton – February 1
- Newtown, Powys – February 15
- Winton branch in Bournemouth, Dorset – February 15
- Rhyl, Denbighshire – February 15
- Bolton, Greater Manchester – February
- Accrington, Lancashire – March 15
- Halstead, Essex – April
- Halesowen, West Midlands – April
- Diss, Norfolk – April
- Newport, Wales – April
- Haverhill, Suffolk – April 26
- Woolwich – April
- Stockton, County Durham – May
- Oldham, Greater Manchester – May
- West Mall, Frenchgate Centre Doncaster – May 31
- Orpington, Greater London
