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WH Smith Travel revenue rises as high street flags
WH Smith has announced a trading update with Travel revenues up 7%, although the High Street side has dropped 6% year-on-year.
Days after confirming it was considering a potential sale, the global chain described a “good start to the financial year with strong growth across all Travel divisions” for the 21-week period up to 25th January 2025 with “acceleration in like-for-like revenue in North America” with plans ongoing for 60 new US stores. In contrast, the chain announced earlier this month it will close 17 UK stores by May 2025.
The results posted on Wednesday (29th January) showed that Travel revenue was up 7% (or 6% like-for-like) year-on-year in both the UK and North America, though the UK high street side was down 6% (or 3% like-for-like) which the company described as "in line with our expectations".
Commenting on today’s announcement, Carl Cowling, group CEO, said: “The group has had a good start to the financial year, and we continue to see strong momentum across our core Travel business.
“Our UK Travel business has delivered another excellent performance across all channels, as we continue to make good progress with the rollout of our one-stop-shop for travel essentials format.
“In North America, we have seen a notable shift in like-for-like revenue growth, up 3%, as a result of the actions we have taken to enhance our ranges and introduce new categories. We are also delighted to announce that we have won eight stores at Orlando International Airport, further to our announcement in November and, more recently, a further four stores at Portland International Airport."
He added: "The group is in a strong position, and while there is some economic uncertainty, we are confident of another year of good growth in 2025.”
The company said: “We exited the Christmas trading period with a clean stock position, and we are on track to deliver our targeted full-year cost savings of £11m.
“We have made a good start to the financial year and, while there is some economic uncertainty, we are confident of another year of good growth in 2025.”
The global travel retailer will announce its 2025 interim results on 16th April 2025.
