Foyles to close St Pancras store

03.06.14 | Lisa Campbell - The Bookseller

Foyles is to leave St Pancras station in London after failing to renegotiate viable terms on its lease.

The six-year-old bookshop first opened in the premises on World Book Day in 2008 and its 10 staff were told earlier today (2nd June) that the bookshop will close when the lease expires on 31st July.
The Bookseller believes department store John Lewis has secured a deal with landlords HS1 for the premises and will open the first of its shops to be situated in a train station, in a new "commute and collect" store format.

After months of lease negotiations, a smaller site at St Pancras offered to Foyles was rejected because it was too small for the bookseller to operate in. Foyles believes it needs at least a 3,000 sqft premises to run its stores.
The news comes in the same week as its new flagship “bookshop of the future” opens at 107 Charing Cross Road in London.

Foyles chief executive Sam Husain said: “We are extremely disappointed, particularly in the week we open our new flagship store, to be leaving St Pancras International where we have created a very successful and popular bookshop, well loved by our customers. We’ve shown at both St Pancras International and, more recently, at Foyles London Waterloo Station that a quality bookshop with a wide range of titles in London’s major termini is both desirable and profitable.”

However, Husain added that the company was “continuing to look for opportunities of a similar size and location,” keeping its portfolio of shops to seven after the company recently opened another train station store at Waterloo.

 “I would like to thank all our staff who have worked so hard to make this bookshop a success and also publishers , suppliers and our many loyal customers – local residents, commuters and visitors to London  - who have supported us so well over the last six years,” Husain said. The 10 Foyles staff at St Pancras are expected to be offered role elsewhere in the company.