High‐speed rail (HSR) can serve cities in two main ways: first and foremost via city‐centre stations, but increasingly also via peripheral stations. By analysing the case of Reims, this article aims to identify the reasons that lead firms to locate around each type of station. Two surveys conducted in 2014 and 2015 enable us to show that HSR not only structures urban space but also segments it by function. While office availability is a very important consideration in the choice of location for both types of areas, other location factors including HSR are typespecific. Moreover, the types of companies in each kind of area are not the same.

While local companies are present in both cases, the central station in Reims plays host to more external creations whereas the peripheral station is favoured for more external relocations. The companies present also differ in terms of their activities. Around the central station, there is a predominance of financial and insurance activities, while in Bezannes – the location of Champagne‐Ardenne TGV station, on the southern outskirts of the city – there is a strong specialization in offices for industry‐related activities.