WH Smith to hold Post Office franchise

It has been known for sometime that the stationery chain, WH Smith, will hold the franchise for Post Office Counters as the Royal Mail off-loads its loss making counter section.    The closure of the Windsor Road Crown office was announced a few days ago.

Some concern has been shown about the fact that WH Smith has no history of providing the sort of services that the Post Office supplies.

We forecast that by 2016 all the larger Tesco stores will also hold a Post Office Counter francise on the basis that they already have an interest in most commercial enterprises.   "Every little helps" - their well known slogan, also applies to their overall profit.    The thought behind this is that customers can buy gifts at Tesco Extra stores and post them to relations and friends without the hassle of carrying items from the store.