Interesting piece on WH Smith Travel on Publishing Perspectives today, well worth reading:

It seems that despite the cost of promotions and shelf space, publishers love WHSmith Travel. Philip Gwyn Jones, Publisher at Portobello, says. “They’re capable of making books that their rivals aren’t touching. We had a difficult, debut novel in February -– Max Schaefer’s Children of the Sun, which deals with skinhead culture -– and they took it, backed it and believed in it. They put in their chart and we had a bigger subscription from them than from Waterstone’s, although you might think this was more of a Waterstone’s book.

“I don’t think WHSmith Travel is celebrated enough. Yes, they take a narrow range, but within that you will see some surprises, in a way you wouldn’t in the supermarkets.”

via Is WHSmith Travel the UKs Best Bookseller? | Publishing Perspectives.