The British public has been left up in arms over the rebrand of the beloved books and stationery retailer WH Smith, which has been sold for £76m and will be renamed as TGJones by its new owners.
The 480 high street stores will disappear after being bought by Modella Capital, owner of the arts and crafts retailer Hobbycraft, but the brand’s lucrative satellite stores, in airports, hospitals and train stations, will stay intact and are unaffected by the sale.
It’s unclear whether the TGJones name is based on a real person, but Modella said the name was chosen to give the same “family” feel as the venerable WH Smith brand.
“TGJones feels like a worthy successor to the WH Smith brand,” a spokesperson said. “Jones carries the same sense of family and reflects these stores being at the heart of everyone’s high street.”
However, Brits have been criticising the “entirely made up” rebrand name as “cynical and soulless” (the original name was based on its founder’s name, Henry Walton Smith, who established the company in 1792).
Consumer journalist Harry Wallop wrote on X/Twitter: “It’s an entirely made up name. There’s cynical and soulless branding. And then there’s TG Jones.”
Another person added: “Imagine buying an authentic retail brand, steeped in history, which has graced the British High Street since 1792, and rebranding it TG Jones – a name that its new owners have made up to sound similar to WH Smith”.
One person chimed in, referencing the hit enterprise show The Apprentice, writing: “The WH Smith high street rebrand to ‘TG Jones’ feels like Lord Sugar told The Apprentice teams they had 90 minutes to come up with a new business name.”
“Rebranding WH Smith as the completely made up and meaningless TGJones is hilarious,” added another.
On a more nostalgic note, others have been paying tribute to the endless hours they spend stationary shopping at the retailer during the back-to-school period as children.
“WH Smith disappearing from the high street. What a sad day. Yet another brick of my childhood being chipped away. Is nothing sacred?”
“We all have WH Smith memories, When it was a great shop full of magazines, records, videos & DVDs, books, stationery – and knowledgeable staff,” another chimed.
“Hope TG Jones maintains the traditions of WH Smith, such as trying to sell you a massive bar of chocolate when you go to pay,” said another.
WH Smith will retain its travel stores, which have become the most lucrative part of the business and make up the bulk of sales and profits across 32 countries.
Bosses have said that the high street stores have become a “much smaller part” of the group, which contribute just 15 per cent of the group’s overall profit.
Group chief executive Carl Cowling said: “As we continue to deliver on our strategic ambition to become the leading global travel retailer, this is a pivotal moment for WHSmith as we become a business exclusively focused on travel.
“As our travel business has grown, our UK high street business has become a much smaller part of the WHSmith Group.
“High Street is a good business; it is profitable and cash generative with an experienced and high-performing management team.
“However, given our rapid international growth, now is the right time for a new owner to take the high street business forward and for the WHSmith leadership team to focus exclusively on our travel business. I wish the High Street team every success.”
The high street buyer Modella Capital specialises in investing in failing retailers, and previously put money into chains including Paperchase and Tie Rack. It bought arts and crafts retailer Hobbycraft for an undisclosed sum in August.
The future of the online card personalisation company Funky Pigeon, which is owned by WH Smith, is also uncertain as the owner said it was looking at “strategic options”.
But Modella has said it intends to keep current high street stores with services such as the Post Office and Toys R Us.
WH Smith is the latest in a list of once ubiquitous stores to disappear from UK high streets, including Debenhams, Topshop and Woolworths, as consumer tastes and habits shift to favour online shopping.
The store was established in 1792 by Henry Walton Smith and his wife Anna in Little Grosvenor Street, London. The company opened the first ever travel retail store in London’s Euston station in 1848, and before its sale, had more than 1,700 stores in over 30 countries.
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