WH Smith chair Henry Staunton lined up as new Post Office head August 22, 2022 The UK government is lining up outgoing WH Smith chairman Henry Staunton to head the Post Office, as it seeks to navigate the fallout of the miscarriage of justice that saw hundreds of the state-owned company’s workers wrongfully convicted of serious crimes. Former ITV finance director Staunton has been chosen as the preferred candidate to [...]
WH Smith de-risks pensions scheme via Standard Life insurance policy August 8, 2022 WH Smith on Monday said it had taken out a bulk annuity insurance policy with Standard Life, through which the Phoenix Group subsidiary will cover the costs of the retailer’s £1bn pension scheme. The high-street bookseller’s insurance policy will see Standard Life pay the pensions of the almost 13,000 members of WH Smith’s defined [...]
Covid recovery: WHSmith airport shops exceed pre-pandemic revenue levels June 15, 2022 High street staple WHSmith is anticipating its full year outturn to hit the higher end of analysts’ expectations after its travel division has surpassed pre-pandemic revenue levels. In a trading update, the stationery seller said group revenue in the 15 weeks to 11 June was ahead of 2019 levels, sitting at 107 per cent. In [...]
WH Smith lures Admiral chief Annette Court as new chairwoman to replace Henry Staunton June 8, 2022 Retailer WH Smith has named Annette Court as its new chairwoman to replace Henry Staunton when he retires later in 2022 year after nine years in the post. Ms Court – currently chairwoman of insurer Admiral Group – will join the board as a non-executive director and chair-designate on September 1 before succeeding Mr Staunton [...]
WH Smith returns to profit and hopes to capitalise on travel comeback April 27, 2022 Stationery giant WH Smith has returned to profit and said it was set to reap the benefits of opening a number of new stores in airports as international travel rebounded. In interim results for the six months ended 28 February 2022, the high street named revealed headline profit before tax and non-underlying items hit £14m. [...]
WH Smith: Orders from Funky Pigeon website suspended after cyber attack hits cards firm April 19, 2022 WH Smith has said Funky Pigeon, its greetings card subsidiary, fell victim to a cyber security incident last week. In an update on the London Stock Exchange, the stationary giant said orders from the Funky Pigeon website have been temporarily suspended. The online retailer was affected by an incident on Thursday 14 April. Customer payment [...]
Deliveroo goes for speed as it joins forces with WHSmith for new 20 minute delivery service March 29, 2022 Online delivery giant Deliveroo said this morning it will soon be able to deliver a raft of products, from printer cartridges to bestselling novels, to customers in under 20 minutes. The company has joined forces with WHSmith as it continues to expand further from its traditional takeaway delivery business. It is Deliveroo’s first major leap [...]
WH Smith takes pandemic beating as spending dips at its travel stores in airports and train stations January 19, 2022 WHSmith has revealed the Omicron variant led to a fall in spending at its travel stores in airports and train stations during the final four months of 2021. The retailer added that high-street sales managed to improve during the same period – including in December as infection rates rose – however, overall, the company’s sales [...]
WH Smith faces investor revolt over executive pay January 16, 2022 WH Smith faces a revolt from investors after it was announced boss Carl Cowling was in line for a £550,000 bonus despite the firm not paying back government pandemic support.
WH Smith hails ‘good start’ to the year despite loss of £104m November 11, 2021 Retailer WH Smith has hailed a “good start” to the new financial year amid a continued recovery in its travel stores. It came as the company reported a group pre-tax loss of £104m for the year to August, reducing its losses from £226m last year. Meanwhile, total revenues for the year dropped by 13% against [...]