Jessops

Jessops is a British photographic retailer, originally known as Jessop of Leicester. It was established in 1935¹ by Frank Jessop in Leicester, United Kingdom. The business now comprises Jessops (Group) Limited, which controls Jessops Europe Limited, which in turn controls JR Prop Limited, formerly known as Jessops Retail Limited. At the end of the 2000s, the business struggled with insolvency, and entered administration in January 2013. The company was rescued by PJ Investment Group, founded by entrepreneur Peter Jones CBE who bought the assets, and formed Jessops (Group) Limited, and related companies.

Jessops is a British photographic retailer, originally known as Jessop of Leicester. It was established in 1935 by Frank Jessop in Leicester, United Kingdom. The business now comprises Jessops (Group) Limited, which controls Jessops Europe Limited, which in turn controls JR Prop Limited, formerly known as Jessops Retail Limited. At the end of the 2000s, the business struggled with insolvency, and entered administration in January 2013. The company was rescued by PJ Investment Group, founded by entrepreneur Peter Jones CBE who bought the assets, and formed Jessops (Group) Limited, and related companies.

History

Early years to 1990s

Frank Jessop founded Jessop of Leicester in 1935, as a specialist photographic retailer. The company expanded to major towns and cities. Jessop later used the Centon name as an own brand for a range of photographic and related goods sold through its shops.

Sale of company and following years (1996–2007)

In July 1996, Alan Jessop, the son of founder Frank Jessop, sold the firm in a management buyout to Bridgepoint Capital. Bridgepoint Capital attempted to float Jessops on the London Stock Exchange in September 2000, but abandoned plans the following month. This was because it was told the firm would list with a market value of £90 million to £100 million. The two hundredth store, Durham, opened in July 2001, which has since closed down. Jessops once again abandoned plans to float, in April 2002. ABN Amro paid £116 million for the company, in September 2002. The sale was completed the next month. ABN Amro applied to float on the London Stock Exchange in October 2004, which successfully occurred the next month. In May 2004, the main warehouse relocated to Weedon Bec, Northamptonshire, as the warehouse in Leicester was considered too small. This resulted in most of the staff being made redundant.

Financial problems (2007–2013)

The company suffered financial difficulties by June 2007, requiring the strategic review, and eventually leading to a re financing with its bankers, HSBC, in September 2009. This led to the group's trade being transferred to a new holding company, Snap Equity Limited, whilst Jessops plc was placed in liquidation and the group's final salary pension scheme transferred to the Pension Protection Fund. Snap Equity was formed as a private company, 48% owned by HSBC, 33% by pension trustees, and 20% by an employee trust. On 21 June 2007, Jessops announced the closure of 81 of its then 315 stores, as "part of a strategic review, which aimed to save the Leicester firm £15m". HSBC acquired the company circa September 2009, in a "debt for equity" deal. The Financial Times commented that the company was hurt by the increasing quality of mobile phone cameras, reducing demand for traditional cameras. On 9 January 2013, Jessops went into administration, with an application made to the High Court. On 11 January, it was announced that all 187 stores would close, with the loss of 1,370 jobs. Shoppers who put up to £500 on a gift card, found them useless, and the company ceased to accept customer returns, although manufacturers' warranties on products not branded by Jessops, were not affected. On 31 January 2013, however, the brand of Jessops, and various assets, were acquired by PJ Investment Group owned by entrepreneur, Peter Jones, one of the investors from the television programme, Dragons' Den. Various new companies were incorporated including Jessops (Group) Limited, Jessops Europe Limited and Jessops Retail Limited. Jones also incorporated Jessops Online Limited, at the same time. On 3 February, the supermarket retailer, Morrisons, agreed to purchase seven of Jessops larger store sites, from the administrators, for an undisclosed price, to be converted to the convenience store format by Morrisons, M Local.

References

External links

Text derived from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1377387956 under CC BY-SA 4.0; modifications have been made.