Update []: WH Smith's high street business has been purchased by Modella Capital, which has announced that it will rebrand stores as TGJones (thanks, BBC News).
As previously mentioned, this will not impact WH Smith's shops at airports and railway stations, or its outlets in hospitals—so it's not vanishing forever. It will, however, disappear from the UK's high streets, where it has been a staple since the Victorian era.
Original Story: Tue 28th Jan 2025
If you live in the UK, then chances are you're familiar with the high-street retailer WH Smith.
With a history that can be traced back to 1792, the company has been part of the British retail landscape for over 200 years and, at one point, was one of the biggest sellers of home computer games in the country–so much so that it was represented in an episode of Charlie Brooker's Black Mirror.
WH Smith was once primarily known for selling stationary, magazines, newspapers, book and music, and many 40-something gamers will no doubt remember picking up the latest Mean Machines, CVG or EDGE from their local branch.
However, as the demand for print media has declined, WH Smith has been forced to diversify its business, and today makes most of its profit from its 'travel' outlets in train stations, hospitals and airports.
The decline of the British high street has been so dramatic that WH Smith is now looking to offload its struggling 500-store chain so it can focus solely on its aforementioned travel operation, which numbers around 1,200 stores worldwide. Last year, this part of the business accounted for 75% of the company's revenue and 85% of its trading profit.
It's not known who will purchase WH Smith's high street stores, and there's no guarantee that they will be maintained in their current state. While many UK gamers readers will rightly claim that's no big loss, it could actually have a more significant impact than you might expect.
Sure, your average WH Smith store in 2025 is packed with many items that are unlikely to tempt the modern player, but—as we've already established—it has long been a bastion for video game print media. It's also one of the only physical stores that stocks a wide range of video game-related publications, including Retro Gamer, EDGE, and even Amiga Addict, an independent print magazine devoted to Commodore's long-defunct home computer.
Should WH Smith's stores be sold off, there's no assurance that the new owner will see any value in stocking specialist magazines of this type, especially when you consider that the circulations for even the most popular gaming magazines are pretty pitiful when compared to the glory days of the '80s and '90s.
We could be facing a situation where it's impossible for many people to pick up a physical copy of magazines like Retro Gamer without having a subscription—a situation which could have dire consequences for the longevity of such magazines at a time when print media is already on its last legs.
Time Extension's local WH Smith branch, based in Loughborough, has been in its current location since the 1970s and was a regular haunt for me as a youngster. It is closing this year, along with several other branches up and down the country, and I will feel its absence keenly; this was where I picked up copies of Games-X, as well as many other gaming publications.
I can certainly admit I'm part of the problem—I don't actually recall the last time I bought anything from the store—it nonetheless makes me sad to see such an important part of my gaming story vanish.
Perhaps you feel the same way, too? Let us know with a comment below.
Are worried about the future of WH Smith on the UK high street? (125 votes)
- Yes
- No
- I don't care either way