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{{Infobox
|colour = #1A19A3
|image = WHSmith Woodall South 2022.jpg
|locations = auto
|accompaniedby = [[M&S Simply Food]], [[Waitrose]], [[SPAR]], [[Coffee Nation]], [[JJ Beanos]], [[Café Nescafe#Nescafe Alegria|Nescafe Alegria]], [[Costa Express]], [[Krispy Kreme]]
|introduced = 2006
|predecessors = [[reStore]], [[Birthdays]], [[T2]], [[Scoop]], [[Thorntons]], [[The Body Shop]]
|usedby = [[Moto]], [[Welcome Break]], [[Roadchef]], [[Extra]]
|successors = none
|website = www.whsmith.co.uk
|facebook = WHSmithuk
|x = WHSmith
|instagram = whsmithofficial
|country = UK
|openinghours = Most open 24 hours
}}
''This is one specific branded shop. For service station shops in general, see [[Shops]].''

Almost every motorway service area in Britain has a '''WHSmith Travel''' store, usually operated by the service area itself, under a [[franchise]] agreement. They will continue using the WHSmith name, even now the main shop is gone.

WHSmith's travel stores were always different to the town centre shops because they focus more on snacks and travel accessories, and less on books and stationery. Due to the way supplies are managed, travel stores usually have a surprisingly broad range of gifts too.

WHSmith was mocked for being a tired and old-fashioned brand, and regularly came last in customer experience surveys. The travel stores became its main growth area and a significant part of its success, though the service station stores are also partly responsible for the brand's reputation for outdated furnishings, unusual product ranges and inflated prices. Over 27,000 people followed [https://x.com/WHS_Carpet a Twitter account] dedicated to satirising the brand's lack of attention to detail.

The main WHSmith brand eventually gave up in 2025, becoming TGJones. For all their flaws, the travel stores will continue using the WHSmith name, creating a pleasing circularity where service stations once used to create their own shopping brands, and now their chosen shopping brand has decided to become associated with transport only.

===Stock and Pricing===
[[File:WHSmith Watford Gap South 2018.jpg|250px|thumb|right|alt=WHSmith service station letters.|Novelty lettering for sale at a Roadchef WHSmith.]]
The exact stock varies depending on the operator running the store, and who their supplier is. Many of the service area stores are used as a customer service desk, selling parking tickets and shower keys, as well as being a payment point for different vending machines, such as [[Costa Express]] and [[Krispy Kreme]]. Their stock rarely fits just in the shop unit, and is usually strewn across the main foyer too, to try to attract more passing trade.

By selling coffee and food, WHSmith's travel stores make up a majority of a service station's legal requirements, and therefore the motorway shops are usually open 24 hours. Some operators have been known to sell scarecrows, wetsuits and garden ornaments, leading to ridicule and confusion from customers. [[Welcome Break]] began incorporating some of WHSmith's partner Toys 'R' Us into their stores in May 2025.

Customers of WHSmith's travel stores regularly comment on their inflated prices. This is true of their travel stores right across the country, but the ones operated by Moto, Welcome Break and Roadchef do tend to be especially expensive. There are some travel stores at other service areas which are operated directly by WHSmith, and these tend to have slightly lower prices, as well as a different product range.

==Motorway Introduction==
[[File:Trowell WHS.jpg|250px|thumb|right|One of the original Moto-operated WHSmith stores.]]
The first reference to WHSmith on the motorway comes surprisingly early - in 1977, in fact. [[Roadchef]] were trying to point out that being a motorway service area meant being an expert in catering, fuel and retail, all at the same time. They then said that if they could go back and ask WHSmith to run their shop for them, they would. At the time the idea of [[franchise|franchising]] was unheard of on the motorway, but nearly 30 years later it caught on.

There was another false start in 1999: [[Granada]] revealed that WHSmith had expressed interest in forming part of their new motorway shopping centres. The partnership never materialised.

Granada's successor, Moto, would go on to be the first operator to work with WHSmith. While Moto had been using multiple shopping brands (and this hadn't brought much success), they still had a newsagent called "Shop", which was operated directly by Moto. These stores were a legacy of the original motorway shops, which had been heavily regulated on their size and could only sell items directly related to travel.

Moto trialled turning five of their existing shops into WHSmith operations in November 2006. This was followed by a further seven stores in December, with a further 41 opening by summer 2007, and that WHSmith would operate two of their own stores at [[Extra]] service areas.

Welcome Break soon followed with a trial at [[Newport Pagnell]] and Roadchef did the same at [[Watford Gap]]. By 2009, it was everywhere.

The fact all three operators have the same store meant none of them had an advantage. As a result, they all left WHSmith to cover the essentials and worked on a convenience-store partner to run a bigger stores next door. Moto had already started with [[Marks and Spencer Simply Food|M&S Simply Food]], Welcome Break started working with [[Waitrose]] and Roadchef initially found [[SPAR]].

All Moto-owned BP forecourts (except [[Wetherby]]) have WHSmith branded stores within the sales shop. Welcome Break had done the same at [[Derby South]], [[Oxford]] and [[Telford]], but this has mostly been removed.

==Locations==
WHSmith travel stores can be found at many service areas. They are: {{viewonamap}}

* [[Abington]] (M74/A74(M))
* [[Annandale Water]] (A74(M))
* [[Baldock]] (A1(M)/A1)
* [[Beaconsfield]] (M40)
* [[Birch]] (M62)
* [[Birchanger Green]] (M11/A120)
* [[Blyth]] (A1(M)/A1)
* [[Bothwell]] (M74) ''(southbound only)''
* [[Bridgwater]] (M5)
* [[Burton-in-Kendal]] (M6) ''(northbound only)''
* [[Cambridge]] (A14)
* [[Cardiff Gate]] (M4)
* [[Cardiff West]] (M4)
* [[Charnock Richard]] (M6)
* [[Cherwell Valley]] (M40/A43)
* [[Chester]] (M56)
* [[Chieveley]] (M4/A34)
* [[Clacket Lane]] (M25)
* [[Cobham]] (M25)
* [[Corley]] (M6)
* [[Cullompton]] (M5)
* [[Doncaster (North)]] (M18/M180)
* [[Donington]] (M1/A42/A50)
* [[Durham]] (A1(M))
* [[Exeter]] (M5)
* [[Ferrybridge]] (M62/A1(M)/A1)
* [[Fleet]] (M3)
* [[Folkestone]] (M20)
* [[Frankley]] (M5)
* [[Gordano]] (M5)
* [[Grantham North]] (A1)
* [[Gretna]] (A74(M))
* [[Hamilton]] (M74) ''(northbound only)''
* [[Hartshead Moor]] (M62)
* [[Heston]] (M4)
* [[Hilton Park]] (M6)
* [[Hopwood Park]] (M42)
* [[Keele]] (M6)
* [[Killington Lake]] (M6) ''(southbound only)''
* [[Kinross]] (M90)
* [[Knutsford]] (M6)
* [[Lancaster]] (M6)
* [[Leeming Bar]] (A1(M))
* [[Leicester Forest East]] (M1)
* [[Leigh Delamere]] (M4)
* [[London Gateway]] (M1)
* [[Lymm]] (M6/M56)
* [[Magor]] (M4)
* [[Maidstone]] (M20)
* [[Medway]] (M2)
* [[Membury]] (M4)
* [[Michaelwood]] (M5)
* [[Newport Pagnell]] (M1)
* [[Northampton]] (M1/A43)
* [[Norton Canes]] (M6 Toll)
* [[Oxford]] (M40/A40)
* [[Pease Pottage]] (M23/A23)
* [[Peterborough]] (A1(M)/A1)
* [[Pont Abraham]] (M4)
* [[Reading]] (M4)
* [[Rotherham]] (M1)
* [[Rownhams]] (M27)
* [[Rugby]] (M6)
* [[Sandbach]] (M6)
* [[Sarn Park]] (M4)
* [[Sawtry]] (A1(M))
* [[Scotch Corner]] (A1(M)/A66)
* [[Sedgemoor]] (M5) 
* [[Severn View]] (M48)
* [[South Mimms]] (M25/A1(M))
* [[Southwaite]] (M6)
* [[Stafford]] (M6) 
* [[Stirling]] (M9/M80)
* [[Strensham]] (M5)
* [[Sutton Scotney]] (A34)
* [[Swansea West]] (M4)
* [[Tamworth]] (M42/A5)
* [[Taunton Deane]] (M5)
* [[Telford]] (M54)
* [[Thurrock]] (M25/A13/A282)
* [[Tibshelf]] (M1)
* [[Toddington]] (M1)
* [[Trowell]] (M1)
* [[Warwick]] (M40)
* [[Watford Gap]] (M1)
* [[Washington]] (A1(M))
* [[Wetherby]] (A1(M))
* [[Winchester]] (M3)
* [[Woodall]] (M1)
* [[Woolley Edge]] (M1)

===Former Locations===
WHSmith has been removed from the following service areas:

* [[Cornwall]] (A30)
* [[Derby South|Derby]] (A50)
* [[Telford]] (M54)

{{bottomnav}}
[[Category:Brands]][[Category:Welcome Break]][[Category:Moto]][[Category:Roadchef]]

Templates used on this page:

Abington (view source)
Annandale Water (view source)
Baldock (view source)
Beaconsfield (view source)
Birch (view source)
Birchanger Green (view source)
Blyth (view source)
Bothwell (view source)
Bridgwater (view source)
Burton-in-Kendal (view source)
Burtonwood (view source)
Cambridge (view source)
Cardiff Gate (view source)
Cardiff West (view source)
Charnock Richard (view source)
Cherwell Valley (view source)
Chester (view source)
Chieveley (view source)
Clacket Lane (view source)
Cobham (view source)
Corley (view source)
Cullompton (view source)
Doncaster (North) (view source)
Donington (view source)
Durham (view source)
Exeter (view source)
Ferrybridge (view source)
Fleet (view source)
Folkestone (view source)
Frankley (view source)
Gordano (view source)
Grantham North (view source)
Gretna (view source)
Hamilton (view source)
Hartshead Moor (view source)
Heston (view source)
Hilton Park (view source)
Hopwood Park (view source)
Keele (view source)
Killington Lake (view source)
Kinross (view source)
Knutsford (view source)
Lancaster (view source)
Leicester Forest East (view source)
Leigh Delamere (view source)
London Gateway (view source)
Lymm (view source)
Magor (view source)
Maidstone (view source)
Medway (view source)
Membury (view source)
Michaelwood (view source)
Newport Pagnell (view source)
Northampton (view source)
Norton Canes (view source)
Oxford (view source)
Pease Pottage (view source)
Peterborough (view source)
Pont Abraham (view source)
Reading (view source)
Rotherham (view source)
Rownhams (view source)
Rugby (view source)
Sandbach (view source)
Sarn Park (view source)
Sawtry (view source)
Scotch Corner (view source)
Sedgemoor (North) (view source)
Sedgemoor (South) (view source)
Severn View (view source)
South Mimms (view source)
Southwaite (view source)
Stafford (North) (view source)
Stafford (South) (view source)
Stirling (view source)
Strensham (view source)
Sutton Scotney (view source)
Swansea West (view source)
Tamworth (view source)
Taunton Deane (view source)
Thurrock (view source)
Tibshelf (view source)
Toddington (view source)
Trowell (view source)
Warwick (view source)
Washington (view source)
Watford Gap (view source)
Wetherby (view source)
Winchester (view source)
Woodall (view source)
Woolley Edge (view source)
Template:Bottomnav (view source)
Template:Ifexist (view source)
Template:Infobox (view source) (protected)
Template:Viewonamap (view source)

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