Iconic high street chain to close 17 shops with ‘everything must go’ sales launched and days left for one branch
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AN iconic high street chain is set to shut a total of 17 shops over the coming months, with one closing in a matter of days. WHSmith has been announcing the closures over the past few months. The retail brand, which runs over 1,100 stores, has closed dozens of stores since 2023, with more to come over the next few months.
![[WHSmith store interior.]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/file-photo-dated-23-01-409364507.jpg?strip=all&w=960)
All of the closures are spread across the country and will be shutting between now and May. It comes after the chain confirmed in November that WHSmith has no plans to expand its presence on the high street and will instead continue to close up to 20 stores each year over the next three.
![[a man walks past a store called whsmith]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/cb2074f4-31cc-424c-9c7c-717b52600060.jpg?strip=all&w=960)
Although the chain also plans to open 90 sites over the next three years. Two of the sites closed just yesterday after holding big closing down sales. WHSmith on Bournemouth high street offered shoppers the chance to snap up discounts of up to 50% off before it shut forever.
The newsagent and stationery giant's last day of trade was January 18. Locals were quick to share their devastation when the news was announced. One said: "Another shop closing so sad to see this.". While a second added: "Another one bites the dust here in Bournemouth it's almost a ghost town.".
A spokesperson for WHSmith told The Sun it was "disappointed" to be closing the branch on Old Christchurch Road but it was "no longer sustainable" to trade from the location. Another site shut its doors for the last time in Luton. The Luton Point shopping centre store was described by the retailer as "no longer sustainable to continue to trade from".
