Last checked at 
* Fiscal year pretax loss 55 mln stg vs 69 mln stg
* Don't foresee problems from supply chain snags during
Christmas
- CEO
* Co says hiring 500 more staff for holiday season
(Adds CEO comments, details)
By Muvija M
Nov 11 (Reuters) - WH Smith expects sales to be at
pre-pandemic levels in its current fiscal year, the retailer
said on Thursday as it posted a smaller annual loss thanks to a
recovery in North America and Britain's high streets after
COVID-19 curbs.
Like most retailers that have a large physical store count,
WH Smith is coming off a turbulent period in which its shops had
to be shut for prolonged periods, leading it to cut jobs and
raise money to get through the COVID-19 crisis.
The company, whose stores in travel hubs sell books,
stationery and other items, said total travel revenue reached
84% of pre-crisis levels last month, prompting it say it was
well-positioned to return to a "meaningful profit" in 2022.
Retailers are also facing difficulty in hiring staff as
economies coming out of the pandemic are experiencing labour
crunch, while supply chains have been strained due to demand and
costs going into the crucial holiday season.
Noting the "tough" job market, WH Smith Chief Executive Carl
Cowling told Reuters that the company was recruiting 500 more
staff for Christmas, adding that they have given a pay rise to
lorry drivers amid a crisis in the haulage industry.
"(We) have worked closely with suppliers to prepare and
ensure we have sufficient stock, and all the stock for Christmas
is already in the UK or being unloaded as we speak. We don’t
foresee problems," Cowling told Reuters via e-mail.
WH Smith said its funkypigeon.com greeting card and gift
business showed a record performance in the 12-month period
ended August.
Annual pretax loss at the company came in at 55 million
pounds ($74.44 million), compared with 69 million pounds a year
earlier.
"Across our digital channels over the medium-term we expect
to see strong growth, particularly from funkypigeon.com, and we
are well-positioned to grow this platform further," said WH
Smith, which currently has 1,540 of its 1,711 stores open around
the world.
($1 = 0.7389 pounds)
(Reporting by Muvija M in Bengaluru; Editing by Ramakrishnan
M., Sherry Jacob-Phillips and Peter Graff)
