The company which took over WHSmith stores has been forced to correct a shop sign after members of the public caught an unfortunate typo on the shop’s sign.
TG Jones said the error, which misspelt the word “stationery”, at its store in St Alban’s, Hertfordshire, had “slipped through the net”.
Alongside advertising books, magazines, pens and artist materials, the sign advertises “stationary”, rather than “stationery”.
The stationer has said it will rectify the mistake “as soon as possible”.
“Unfortunately a spelling error has slipped through the net and we’re now working with our supplier to get this signage reprinted as soon as possible,” a TG Jones spokesman said.
Stephen Linstead, chairman of The English Spelling Society, branded it “sloppiness”.
He told the BBC: “It’s carelessness.
“It’s sloppiness. It does reflect a deterioration in standards, I am afraid.”
WHSmith stores were rebranded to TG Jones earlier this year
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GETTY
WHSmith quit the UK high street after 233 years earlier this year, with its stores rebranded to TG Jones.
The historic retailer sold its 480 high street stores to Hobbycraft owner Modella Capital for £76million.
WHSmith said the move will allow it to focus on its growing travel shops business.
The WHSmith brand was not included in the sale to Modella.
WHSmith quit the UK high street after 233 years earlier this year
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PA
It was revealed this week that WHSmith is under investigation by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) over a series of accountancy failures in its US operations.
A review into the retailer conducted by Deloitte uncovered shortcomings that led to North American profits being overstated by as much as £50million.
WHSmith has published its delayed preliminary results on Friday, conceding the past year proved challenging for the travel retailer amid the FCA investigation into accounting irregularities.
The Swindon-headquartered company’s shares dropped by up to six per cent in early trading before recovering slightly, making it one of the worst performers on the FTSE mid-cap index.
The stock has now declined nearly 42 per cent since the start of the year as the accounting scandal continues to weigh on investor sentiment.
Former chief executive Carl Cowling departed with immediate effect last month after the Deloitte report identified weaknesses within the North American operations.
Trading profit in the division collapsed from a restated £34million in 2024 to just £15million in the latest financial year.