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| In-store post offices at WH Smith | |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| WH Smith has said it is to open Post Office franchises within 70 of its 540 UK High Street stores. | WH Smith has said it is to open Post Office franchises within 70 of its 540 UK High Street stores. |
| The move follows a trial of the system in six outlets. | The move follows a trial of the system in six outlets. |
| The franchises will see existing Post Office outlets relocated to WH Smith stores an average of 250 metres from the original site, the firm said. | The franchises will see existing Post Office outlets relocated to WH Smith stores an average of 250 metres from the original site, the firm said. |
| Separately the company said pre-tax profits in the six months to the end of February were £59m, up 7% on the year after exceptional costs were removed. | Separately the company said pre-tax profits in the six months to the end of February were £59m, up 7% on the year after exceptional costs were removed. |
| Combination 'makes sense' | Combination 'makes sense' |
| WH Smith said that there was a "natural fit" between its brand and the post office. | |
| "Following the positive response to our post office trial, we are pleased to be able to bring the full range of post office services and an enhanced customer offer to more communities", said WH Smith chief executive Kate Swann. | |
| Post Office Ltd Managing Director, Alan Cook, welcomed the partnership, saying it would help put the post office network "on a sound financial footing, after many years of heavy losses". | |
| "The combination of a WH Smith store and a post office branch makes perfect sense for customers and we both believe that it will strengthen our respective businesses," he said. | |
| In August last year, WH Smith demerged from its newspaper distribution business Smiths News. | In August last year, WH Smith demerged from its newspaper distribution business Smiths News. |
| In January, it said it was planning to shut its final-salary pension scheme in a move that will affect about 11% of its workforce or about 2,000 staff. | In January, it said it was planning to shut its final-salary pension scheme in a move that will affect about 11% of its workforce or about 2,000 staff. |