Skip to player
Skip to main content
Skip to footer
Search
Connect
Watch fullscreen
Like
Comments
Bookmark
Share
Add to Playlist
Report
WHSmith rebrands to TGJones across UK high streets
National World - LocalTV
Follow
yesterday
WHSmith is now TGJones, and River Island is closing dozens of stores—including one in Sutton Coldfield. From Birmingham city centre, we ask shoppers how they feel about the names vanishing from their high street.
Category
🗞
News
Transcript
Display full video transcript
00:01
WH Smith isn't WH Smith anymore. A name that's been on British streets for over two centuries
00:07
has now vanished from hundreds of high street stores, replaced by something no one recognises, TG Jones.
00:14
It's a rebrand born out of a buyout, not identity. The name was sold off and with it, a sense of continuity.
00:20
In its place, a label that feels deliberately generic, not local, not legacy, just unremarkable.
00:27
On the surface, the shop still stocks similar items, but for a lot of people, the name meant trust, nostalgia, even routine.
00:35
Now that it's gone, rebranded, faceless, unfamiliar, does it still feel like the same shop?
00:40
Oh, no. Oh, goodness. No, they just took two letters and another surname. I don't really know why they did that.
00:46
But WH Smith is so iconic. You know what I mean?
00:49
You're in the airport, you go there to get your stationery. I'm not going to get here. What is it called?
00:53
TG Jones. TG here now. I don't find myself walking in front of TG Jones any time soon, you know?
00:58
It's a bit of a strange thing to do. I mean, I wouldn't, I wouldn't shop in there anyway, because I found it very expensive.
01:06
But a bit like Coca-Cola changing its name to a random thing.
01:12
I mean, I guess it's just the name, so it's not going to be that different. But WH Smith is kind of iconic.
01:17
So I think it's got that brand name recognition and people, people know Smiths, you know?
01:24
It doesn't really bother me to be honest with you. Yeah. Yeah. There's no change to me anyway. Yeah.
01:34
It's not just WH Smith. River Island is slashing stores too.
01:39
33 confirmed closures. Another 71 under review.
01:43
In Birmingham, the Sutton Coalfield branch is already set to go.
01:46
But across the UK, the store is the same. Rising costs. Falling profits.
01:51
Landlords unwilling to budge. Jobs are on the line and so are the habits of thousands of shoppers.
01:57
For years, stores like WH Smith and River Island gave people a reason to come into town. They were reliable.
02:04
Now, that familiarity is slipping and the high street feels like it's thinning out.
02:09
So do people still shop at these places? And if not, what's taking their place?
02:16
I think it's just a name, it doesn't really matter to be honest.
02:18
Even though it's a high street staple, when was the last time you walked into WH Smith?
02:22
Part of me thinks it's a money laundering spot, you know, don't hold me to that, but...
02:25
No, I think it's iconic. Like, you're supposed to be on the high street.
02:28
Like, you're going in when you were little to get your stationery bits and your books for school.
02:32
I'm not going to be like, oh yeah, I'm going to go to 2J, whatever.
02:35
And one of those WH Smith is so classic. And the high street's dying already.
02:38
It's just like another piece that's gone.
02:40
That's true. I hear that.
02:42
I didn't really shop at River Island, but I definitely shopped at WH Smith.
02:46
And I have also noticed quite a difference on the high streets.
02:51
Like, lots of shops closed. Lots of places that, yeah, are just shut down now, like Peacocks and stuff.
02:58
Like, lots of shops, you just said, like, black streets.
03:01
Like, lots of shops in there.
03:08
Yeah, that's hats to kind of the rib.
03:13
enfil한데 sudiza.
03:15
Okay ...
03:17
Deer Oh shit.
Recommended
1:45
|
Up next
North East Leads the Nation in Childhood Obesity Rates
National World - LocalTV
today
3:00
Chris Kendall: Giving Voice to Global Brands and Local Dreams
National World - LocalTV
today
3:00
London’s most anti-social behaviour hotspots revealed
National World - LocalTV
today
1:00
People on the street: Who should be on the new banknotes?
National World - LocalTV
today
2:15
Robins full of energy in pre-season says new coach Bernd Eibler
National World - LocalTV
today
3:00
Favourite shopping spots across Birmingham
National World - LocalTV
09/06/2025
1:00
WHSmith’s plans for the high street and travel sector
Local TV
29/01/2025
0:40
WH Smith: Famous name to disappear from UK high streets
Yorkshire Post
04/06/2025
3:05
British retail: Are you concerned about branch closures on our high streets?
National World - LocalTV
12/07/2023
24:00
The State of the Streets: Are Our High Streets in Crisis?
National World - Broadcast Video
15/09/2023
3:00
Morrisons closures spark local concern in Birmingham
National World - LocalTV
27/03/2025
1:00
What will the high street look like in five years? Birmingham shares its thoughts
National World - LocalTV
02/07/2025
3:39
Portsmouth shoppers have their say on the state of the high street
The News, Portsmouth
6 days ago
3:00
Lost shopfronts and local stories from Ladywood's past
National World - LocalTV
04/04/2025
3:05
Take a tour of the new M&S in the BullRing, Birmingham
National World - LocalTV
08/11/2023
3:05
Bristol’s Wilko’s store closes: What will it be replaced with?
National World - LocalTV
19/09/2023
1:00
Marks & Spencer: 20 new M&S stores to open, creating 3,400 jobs
National World - LocalTV
16/01/2023
3:05
Which High Street store and shops do Brummies miss the most?
National World - LocalTV
15/02/2023
1:00
Liverpool predicts the future of the high street
National World - LocalTV
02/07/2025
1:00
Bristol Answers: Following the announcement of store closures from Boots and M&S What shops do you miss from the high street?
National World - LocalTV
27/03/2024
1:03
Shop closures in January 2025: Full list including New Look and Shoe Zone
Evening Standard
08/01/2025
3:05
Five things you need to know in Birmingham this week
National World - LocalTV
18/11/2022
3:05
Take a tour of the new M&S in the BullRing
National World - LocalTV
07/11/2023
0:56
300 Boots shops to close across the UK
Evening Standard
23/07/2024
3:00
Leeds Morrisons shoppers react to closure of cafes and other in-store services
National World - LocalTV
03/04/2025