WH Smith branch closing Basingstoke Post Office

A spokesperson for WH Smith has confirmed to the Gazette that the store in The Malls, where the post office is located, will close on Saturday, February 1, 2025 because “it is no longer viable to trade from this location to continue.”

The town center post office branch moved to the WH Smith branch in 2019, despite objections from residents and councilors who feared the move would lead to a loss of footfall in the Top of Town.

READ MORE: Empty John Lewis store in Basingstoke to reopen after takeover by new retailer

The postal service said in a statement that the branch operator had resigned.

It added: “The operator of Basingstoke Post Office has resigned as WHSmith has made the difficult decision to close the store in which the branch is located. It will close on February 1st as the lease expires.”

It was confirmed that the Basingstoke Post Office vacancy has been advertised and there are “several interested retailers”.

It added: “There are already two applicants and a potential third. We will review their applications and hope to move forward with one of these applicants.”

A WH Smith spokesman said: “It is no longer viable to continue trading from this location and the decision has been taken to close the store due to the imminent expiry of the lease.”

“We are disappointed to lose our presence in Basingstoke and would like to thank all of our customers for their support and shopping with us. We are also extremely grateful for the commitment of our branch colleagues, who we will support in this transition and relocate to surrounding branches where possible.”

The retailer, which operates more than 1,100 stores, announced in January that it would close a number of stores across the UK. Basingstoke was not on the list of planned store closures at the time.

The chain also announced an expansion with the opening of 15 branches at airports and train stations.