WH Smith’s high street stores saw sales fall 6% in the second half of the year as the company gears up for a potential sell-off.
It was the only drag in an otherwise strong set of results that saw total revenue grow 3% in the 21 weeks to 25 January.
The falling sales in its British high street stores were exacerbated by store closures, with a like-for-like comparison showing sales down just 3%.
This was in line with expectations and WH Smith said it was on track to deliver its targeted full-year cost savings of £11m.
WH Smith has closed numerous high street stores since 2023 when the chain announced it was focusing on UK airports and train stations, as well as expanding across US and Europe.
The retail chain has confirmed it is now in talks to sell its high street business to focus exclusively on the Travel division.
UK travel is the company’s biggest division and saw revenue rise 7% in the period, building on strong growth the prior year. It said it is seeing “good results from the new food and extended health and beauty ranges which are driving further profitability”.
Airports are performing best – up 9% - while hospitals rose 8% and train stations 5%.
“The Group has had a good start to the financial year, and we continue to see strong momentum across our core travel business,” said CEO Carl Cowling.
“[It] is in a strong position, and while there is some economic uncertainty, we are confident of another year of good growth in 2025.”
In North America, like-for-like revenue was up 3% compared to the prior year. This reflects 10 store closures across two major hotels in Las Vegas, and the closure and refurbishment of five stores across Charlotte and Denver airports.
This is part of an ongoing strategy to improve the quality of its stores and focus investment in higher-growth airport Travel Essentials stores, the business said.
The US business now has a pipeline of around 60 stores yet to open after winning eight stores at Orlando Airport and a further four in Portland Airport.
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