WH Smith has sold its high street business to the owner of Hobbycraft for £76m.

Sky News revealed in January how a sales process was underway for the arm, which employs roughly 5,000 people and has almost 500 stores.

Modella Capital won the final stage of the auction process in a run off against Alteri investors.

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The deal will see the WH Smith name erased from town centres, with the wider business switching its full focus to its more lucrative travel arm.

WH Smith said the new owners were to rebrand the stores they were taking on as TGJones.

Alteri and Modella Capital both specialise in buying troubled retailers, with the latter having recently bought The Original Factory Shop as well as joining the bidding for family-owned Lakeland.

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