OuterDistant
Member
This month's Viz has a one-off strip entitled Buying a Newspaper at the Railway Station. Aimed firmly at WH Smith, I feel!
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WH Smiths at Railway Stations
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Don't know if this has already been mentioned, but price-conscious consumers at Birmingham New Street should head straight up the escalator to Pallasades to find an unreconstructed 70s shopping centre at unreconstructed 90s prices. For now, at least... I imagine the 'redevelopment' will ruin my chance of getting a 66p Greggs sausage roll from a major railway station!
Yes the Pallasades is great. Still very much like it was in the 70's. They even play a lot of 70's and 80's music too. It's like stepping back into a time warp! I like how the lighting is fairly dim too, unlike a lot of these modern shopping centres now with overly ultra bright lighting!
You've got Greggs and Tesco's up there, with reasonable prices. And then there's the 99p shop perfect for getting 4 cans(of fizzy drink) for 99p! And 3 bars of chocalate for 99p! Sandiches too for 99p, though they aren't really that great.
I've stopped using Smiths too. Spent £15 on Railway magazines and they wanted me to pay for a bag. Just walked out and got my mags from the nearby Ian Allan store in Birmingham. Much nicer place to shop and I got a free bag. I also didn't get the pile of waste paper (coupons) I get from Smiths.
They argue that paying for bags saves the environment. Rubbish (excuse the pun) as they still provide so many coupons which is detrimental to saving the trees!
Nym
Established Member
But companies pay a lot of money for them cupons to be handed out... And trust me, with some of the ops methods at WHST that should be the least of your enviromental concerns.
Btw, reasonably high at branch level I was...
Btw, reasonably high at branch level I was...
Nym
Established Member
Yes sweetie, one is wise to the idiots of retail on Waudor Street
They better not find out what the WH Smith store did 'railside' at Cambridge. When I purchased my extra cheap bottle of water, the woman on the till scanned some vouchers but didn't give them to me - she was merely scanning the same vouchers over and over!
Now, on the plus side, I didn't get a voucher I didn't want - but if someone is paying to have them given out, I think they might just want a refund.
Not unless it's legislated, as it is in Wales, that the 5p for a carrier bag goes to an environmental charity. As far as I can work out, the bag charge in Smiths is for themselves only.
They seem to almost insist you take the voucher sometimes in rather crafty ways like putting it inside the newspaper you are buying or handing it to you with your change.
Despite this I refuse to be coerced into increasing the amount of unnecessary recyclable waste that goes to landfill as a result of me putting it in the nearest bin.
Their most common tactic is not handing it to you so you can say no thank you but to place it on top of the newspaper almost ensuring that you pick both up. I on the other hand pick up the newspaper and let the voucher side off on to the counter and walk out, often I am rewarded with what could be described as the 'WHS scowl'.
Nym
Established Member
at least you never got the WHST MANT2 slap that one guy got...
I was told by someone in the know, that the rent for a WHSmiths at one of the London terminii is around £1.5m p.a. - which goes someway to explaining the higher charges.
Another useless fact is that there is a hot dog stand next to City Hall in New York which pays over $1m a year to trade there - so it must do well.
Another useless fact is that there is a hot dog stand next to City Hall in New York which pays over $1m a year to trade there - so it must do well.
One word: Boots. 95p.
After security?
Trouble is at Southampton WHS is the only shop to buy things to carry on board and as a result are in a position to hove control over the market.
WestCoast
Established Member
Boots are after security at a lot of UK airports.
43021HST
Established Member
Agree with you, Reading station used to be a pleasant place to be with its open areas, but now various coffee stands and an M&S food place thing occupy it. Call me mad but I'd rather not have a shopping spree before I travel on a train.
Also what's with having a branch of accessorise at every major station. You dont need it
Never wanted to use them at an airport so I suppose I haven't noticed them.
Definitely available at LHR, LGW, and EDI. Definitely not available at SOU, LCY, and BOH. Haven't been through any other UK airports of late.
Ha, but compared with non-WHS Newspaper-selling places at railway stations...
I once tried to buy "The Economist" at the Spar (I think it is) at Didcot Parkway station. The woman at the till looked at me blankly and said "Never 'eard of it , luv, why don't you try Sainsbury's?".
Hmmm.
(For future reference: the WHSmith on Platforms 3 and 4 is generally speaking better for such things, even if the way it is now annoyingly shared with a Pumpkin means you may well have to wait ages to buy a newspaper while the cashier is occupied making a cappucino, heating sandwiches, etc)
WestCoast
Established Member
Boots are also available at MAN, LPL, BHX, EMA, BRS, NCL, BFS and GLA, plus DUB in Ireland.
There's a Co-Op nearby if passengers are sassy to go there before going to the station.
Butts
Veteran Member
Presumeably they pay lower rents than WHS as they don't seem to "load up" quite as much.
Seriously with the recent incursion of Greggs and Tesco into some Airports WHS will soon be in "squeaky bum" territory.
Nym
Established Member
Boots and WHS in airports pay exactly the same rent, excluding special conditions that WHS put in place, thats the only thing that means it costs slightly more. (I do know what the rents are for Manchester)
And heres something more fun, WHS Staff are paid on avarage about £1.20/hr less, and have many many less benefits, no real staff discount, no parking etc.
Oh, and Boots in general has more staff than WHSmith, we usually ran at 2 staff per unit, boots run at about 5 staff per unit, although our staffing changed a lot during the day at MAN.
And heres something more fun, WHS Staff are paid on avarage about £1.20/hr less, and have many many less benefits, no real staff discount, no parking etc.
Oh, and Boots in general has more staff than WHSmith, we usually ran at 2 staff per unit, boots run at about 5 staff per unit, although our staffing changed a lot during the day at MAN.
Butts
Veteran Member
Referring to Railway Stations I can't believe that WHS have not got some sort of "economies of scale" rent discount as they have a virtual monopoly on Railway Stations - I wonder if it was different when John Menzies were still about?
Nym
Established Member
No, because they bid aggressively for railway station contracts and airport contracts, and put in bids with conditions that are seemingly reasonable, but they put a lot over the odds for, when they designed the bidding scheme years ago, it worked, it doesn't now.
They only have an oligopoly on railway stations because of this bidding process, they don't go in to places where they can't muscle out competitors, hence why they're being hurt at Piccadilly, with Ian Allan and a Newsagent's outside.
They only have an oligopoly on railway stations because of this bidding process, they don't go in to places where they can't muscle out competitors, hence why they're being hurt at Piccadilly, with Ian Allan and a Newsagent's outside.
Statto
Established Member
I had a look in WHS at Lime Street yesterday & there offers were £2:50 for 2 500ml bottles of Coke, & had quite a few of these types of offers, but still at rip off prices, i didn't look in Boots though as there normally a lot cheaper.
Butts
Veteran Member
Surely they also have to pay high rents in areas such as Edinburgh London and York for example,on the high street, yet they don't jack the prices up in these outlets which rather contradicts the explanation they gave to me.
My question regarding cigarette prices was rhetorical to a degree, as the demand is inelastic they can get away with tanking a note on them. They must have the highest margin of any tobacco retailer in the UK (excluding duty free)
Nym
Established Member
It's due to the different ways that they pay rent, and the different margins for distribution, stores is usually cheaper, and also the fact that you sell a very different range of products on high street, usually including very high profit lines such as books and HTC magazines, stationary etc etc. as primary products, rather than convenience that has a much lower profit margin.
Also take into account that WHS High Street looses money year on year, WHS Travel is actually profitable, just...!
Also take into account that WHS High Street looses money year on year, WHS Travel is actually profitable, just...!
Butts
Veteran Member
Nym
Established Member
The John Menzies effect was them being WHS's main station competitor, until they where bought out. By WHS Group
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