Industry Retail Area served United Kingdom Owner Peter Jones Headquarters Marlow Type of business Private limited company | Founder Frank Jessop Revenue £236.8 million (2011) Number of locations 56 (2016) Founded 1935 | |
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Key people Neil Old (Chief Executive Officer) Products Photographic equipment
Photograph processing Profiles | ||
Jessops Europe Limited is a British photographic retailing company. It was established in Leicester in 1935, by Frank Jessop, and traded under the name of The Jessop Group Limited.
Contents
The business entered administration on 9 January 2013, and all 187 Jessops retail stores ceased trading on 11 January 2013, until the British entrepreneur Peter Jones CBE invested several million pounds into the company, and formed Jessops Europe Limited.
On 28 March 2013, six stores reopened, and Jones aimed to open a new store every day on average during April 2013. The relaunch of the Oxford Street store in London received considerable media interest, and was attended by several celebrities, including the actor James Corden. As of April 2016, there are now fifty two stores of Jessops, and since July 2014, Sainsbury's has started rolling out Jessops branches in its larger stores.
History
Frank Jessop founded "Jessop of Leicester" in 1935, as a specialist photographic retailer. The company expanded to major towns and cities. In July 1996, Alan Jessop, Frank's son, sold the firm in a management buy out. This was to Bridgepoint Capital. The two hundredth store, Durham, opened in July 2001. The store has now closed.
In September 2000, Bridgepoint Capital attempted to float Jessops on the London Stock Exchange, 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. In April 2002, Jessops again abandoned plans to float.
In September 2002, ABN Amro paid £116 million for the company. The sale was completed the next month. In October 2004, ABN Amro applied to float on the London Stock Exchange, 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
In 2007, the company suffered financial difficulties requiring a 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."
Administration and closure
On 9 January 2013, Jessops Group Limited 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 anywhere up to £500 on a gift card, found them useless and company ceased to accept customer returns although manufacturers' warranties on products not branded by Jessops were not affected.
On 31 January 2013, however, the Jessops brand and various assets were acquired by entrepreneur Peter Jones CBE, one of the investors from the television programme Dragons' Den. 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 Morrisons convenience store format M Local.
Reopening
The British entrepreneur Peter Jones formed Jessops Europe Limited, and the retailer opened for business on 28 March 2013, and re launched the high street brand. Two stores in London and Birmingham reopened on 28 March, and Manchester, Aberdeen, High Wycombe and St. Albans opened on 29 March 2013. Several other stores reopened throughout April. Jessops online photo business is also owned by Peter Jones CBE.
By September 2013, the company had opened twenty eight stores across the United Kingdom. In July 2014, Jessops signed a landmark deal with Sainsbury's. This deal meant more Jessops stores will be opened, in the larger supermarkets across the country. As of November 2016, Jessops has now opened fifty two stores across the United Kingdom.
Operations
In January 2013, at the time of its collapse, Jessops Group Limited had 187 stores across the United Kingdom. The new business, formed by Peter Jones CBE, Jessops Europe Limited, reopened over 30 stores across the country. All the stores contain mini labs, that offer one hour processing of photographic film, or a twenty five minute "express" service. Jessops' "new" head office is in Marlow, Buckinghamshire.