There was a time when bookstores looked like they could be a bygone relic in the digital age. These stores have changed over the years, yet the desire for physical books still exists. After all, Amazon, the world’s leading digital retailer, built their empire off of selling books. A new player has entered the bookselling market, and they bring a strong following from their home in the U.K. WHSmith is an England based retailer that specializes in books, stationary and other assorted merchandise. The variety of products that can be found in their stores is astounding and the U.S. doesn’t have anything quite like it. It is for this reason that the British giant has expanded into the states.

WHSmith was founded in 1792, making the company one of the oldest operating in America, as a mom-and-pop shop run by henry Walton Smith and his wife. The initial business was a newsstand that focused on selling newspapers and books. The business remained in the Smith family until 1948 when it was reformed as a public company. Despite becoming public, the Smith family had some control over the business until 1996. What started as a simple newsstand has stretched into a multi-century empire that sells far more than newspapers.

The expansion of WHSmith began when the founder’s son opened newsstands on burgeoning railway stations that put the brand front and center for traveling customers. By the late 1800’s WHSmith had added publishing and library services to the company. In 1966 they devised a nine-digit code that could be assigned to a book to create a unique reference. In 1974 this code would become the ISBN system that we use to identify books today. Of course, WHSmith’s success was not just built on their newspapers and books, the company also expanded to travel stores that offered general goods and added music to their shops in 1986.

After finding so much success in the U.K. the company looked to international expansion. They opened in Canada in 1950 and operated there for several decades before closing. The company also operates in Australia, India and is planning an expansion into China. WHSmith’s current foray into the U.S. was not their first attempt at reaching the American market. They operated airport locations in 1985, yet all their stores were closed by 2003. They are hoping that this second foray meets with more sustained success. The company is aiming to open fifty stores in North America this year and will be focusing again on airport locations. WHSmith’s varied merchandise is a natural fit for airports and plays to the company’s strength of targeting travelers.

WHSmith is set to expand their empire and could make a lasting impact in North America. The U.S. market is not easy to break into, as the company already found out 40 years ago. WHSmith is a company that has existed for over two centuries and they are poised to carve out even more for their empire.