The sluggish American travel market continues to hurt results at WH Smith. The company has closed 19 of its stores based in U.S. hotels, and U.S. sales at the British news and book chain are down 20% for the 20 weeks ending January 19. A review of the entire U.S. operation is underway.
At the group's Atlanta headquarters, 50 staff have lost their jobs in an effort to reduce costs by $5 million. Rental terms at WH Smith's 180 airport outlets are being renegotiated; instead of a flat rate, it is expected that the rents will now be calculated as a percentage of sales.
The U.S. division of WH Smith accounts for only 10% of the group's revenue, though it operates 573 outlets. At the WH Smith annual general meeting in London last week, shareholders were told that the division had lost £10 million ($14 million) in the first four months of the year; analysts are speculating that the loss for the full year could be between £15 million and £20 million.
