Colouring books brighten WH Smith performance

The 224-year-old group said growth at its high street business was driven by the recent trend towards “colour therapy”, including colouring books for adults.

The “colour therapy” trend is picking up in the UK as more and more customers look to de-stress and spend time away from their mobile phones and tablet screens.

WH Smith’s high street stores, which sell stationery, magazines, confectionery and books from over 600 outlets, reported flat like-for-like sales, with total sales down 1 per cent over the 20 weeks to January 16.

However, their performance over the Christmas period was better, with like-for-like sales up 2 per cent over the five week period to January 2.

Stephen Clarke, group chief executive, said WH Smith had delivered “a good performance” over the 20 week period.

He added: “Looking forward, profitable growth and cash generation will remain central to our plans allowing us to invest in new opportunities for the future.”

David Jeary, analyst at Canaccord Genuity, said: “I cannot remember the last time I saw a positive like-for-like sales figure for the high street division, so that’s an indication of breaking the trend.”

Mr Jeary, however, cautioned that it would be too early to conclude that the company’s high street business had recovered, based on its Christmas performance.

With shopping habits in the UK changing, and more and more consumers going online, high street sales have taken a hit over the Christmas period.

Marks & Spencer reported dire trading in clothing and gifts over Christmas, partly blaming unseasonably warm winter weather, while much of department stores group John Lewis’s better performance came online rather than in stores.

WH Smith said like-for-like sales were up 2 per cent in the 20 weeks to January 16, with total sales rising 4 per cent.

Total sales at its travel arm, comprising outlets at airports, railways stations, motorway services, hospitals and workplaces, rose 12 per cent, helped by improving passenger trends.