WH Smith & Son

The English place to be in Paris

The brief

Paris’ most renowned English bookstore, known since 1903 as WH Smith & Son, wished to restore its reputation for excellence by putting books back at the heart of its offer and reconnect with its history, in a place of culture, where time rhymes with delight and discovery.

Our recommendation

The bookstore, formerly known as WH Smith, returns to its original name and now offers a new thematic experience that will delight any fan of English literature and international press reader.

A brand-new identity for Smith & Son that brings out the old as well as the new, with a modern typeface whose letters M and N evoke the book edges of books, associated with a classic typographic baseline, reminding us of the store’s English heritage. Through its dynamic territory of expression, it evokes the diversity of the offer.

Smith & Son offers its visitors a light wood setting, spreading over more than 600 m2, bathed in natural sunlight. Lonsdale enhanced the layout of the store to create more space and ease the customer journey. Various focus points and areas bring rhythm and new natural light that helps better to understand the offer and the store’s organization.

Decorative touches with British accents punctuate the aisles of the bookstore and create a friendly atmosphere. The store is carefully organized into 3 distinct universes, dedicated to the store’s three sections:

The bookstore, enriched by a clear and soft palette and classic-style counters, an English-style bench for a reading break, and the central staircase, an emblematic element of the bookstore dating from 1908, restored and treated as a blue box, mixing “Old English” style and new.
The Kitchen, offering a unique universe, all in green, with renovated furnishings, that displays recipe books, derivative products and a selection of groceries around a unique kitchen theme.
The international press area, a chic and modern “black box” to promote the largest selection of international fashion magazines in Europe.