Bridgwater's WHSmith premises for sale ahead of closure

On Tuesday, May 14, the nationwide stationery, magazine, and confectionary retailer confirmed to the Mercury that its branch in Bridgwater would close for good on Saturday, September 7, 2024.

Less than two weeks after the announcement, the premises has gone on the market to rent at £52,000 per year, or to purchase for £750,000.

The building features a ground floor sales 4,240 square feet, as well as stores of 491 square feet, plus 2,840 square feet of first floor ancillary accommodation.

The first floor can be accessed via both the front and rear of the building, and is serviced by a staircase to the rear of the shop which leads to a kitchen, staffroom, two offices and male and female WCs.

A spokesperson for Greenslade Taylor Hunt added: "This remaining area accessed via a prominent staircase off Cornhill has in the past been separately occupied as not only offices but a snooker hall.

"This area is currently arranged as a number of offices separated via stud partitioning but could be predominately open plan throughout. There are two further W/Cs."

A spokesperson for WHSmith said the company was 'disappointed' to have to close the shop in a statement issued to the Mercury earlier in May, and added that trading in Bridgwater had become 'unsustainable'.

“We can confirm that the WHSmith store in Bridgwater will be closing on Saturday, September 7," they said.

"It is no longer sustainable to continue to trade from this location and the decision has been taken to close the store as a result of the forthcoming lease expiry.

"We are disappointed to be losing our presence in Bridgwater and we would like to thank all our customers for their support and for shopping with us.

"We are also extremely grateful for the commitment of our in store colleagues who we will support with this transition and redeploy to nearby stores, where possible.”

The news of the closure came as a surprise to many locals, despite heavy speculation of the store's future.