books - wh smith

WHSmith.co.uk - WHSmith is the UK's number one family retailer selling a range of products that extends across education, entertainment and information. Each year W H Smith High Street stores sell enough pens to circle the earth; enough books to fill a library shelf from London to Edinburgh; and enough paper to write a letter to everyone in the world. WH Smith also sell 122 million magazines and newspapers each year - enough to make a pile 69 times taller than Mount Everest.

The first High Street store was a small news vendor opened in 1792 in Little Grosvenor Street, London, by Henry Walton Smith and his wife Anna. Today, W H Smith has 553 High Street stores, covering over 3 million square feet of selling space and employing 17,000 staff. Clubcard, the Company's loyalty scheme, has more than 9 million members.

Books, newspapers, magazines and stationery form the core of the High Street business. W H Smith sell more books than any other retailer in England, Scotland and Wales. For example, one in three copies of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire were bought from W H Smith in the first weekend of release. They promote new authors with our Fresh Talent showcase and also have the Thumping Good Read Award that is voted for by members of Clubcard.

W H Smith's major stores stock more than 45,000 product lines, whereas an average food supermarket carries around 10,000 lines.

W H Smith is now one of the UK's leading retail groups incorporating market leading companies in retail, publishing and news distribution. The Group has 1,464 stores world-wide, 30,747 employees in 12 countries and sales of some £2.9bn. WH Smith PLC is listed on the London Stock Exchange (SMWH) and is part of the FTSE mid 250 index.

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