The sale of WHSmith's high street business to Modella Capital has completed - at a lower price than originally planned.

Originally set to sell for £52m, WHSmith which has high street stores in Cheltenham, Gloucester, Stroud, Cirencester and Tewkesbury, will now receive £40m for the business due to weaker trading conditions, as reported by Retail Gazette.

Private equity firm Modella, which owns Hobbycraft, will take on 480 WHSmith stores and 5,000 employees as part of the deal.

It has already been reported that the 233-year-old retail chain will be rebranded as TGJones, with the store in Tewkesbury likely to be the first in the county to make the switch. 

The deal leaves WHSmith free to focus solely on its more profitable travel retail arm at airports and railway stations around the world.