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Another well-known British high street chain has been forced into administration. Jessops, the last remaining camera store chain in the UK, has just folded, with PricewaterhouseCoopers now taking charge. If you had any Jessops vouchers or were hoping to return a camera, you’re fat out of luck.
PwC is hoping that it’ll be able to salvage the business, rather than shut up shop completely, but it’s almost inevitable that stores will close. How many on the 192 high street shops, and how many jobs will be lost, hinges on the back-room discussions currently happening.
It’s a sad day for camera enthusiasts, even if you hated Jessops, because it was pretty much the only camera store left standing in the UK, short of a couple of small locals dotted around. On the bright side, there might be some bargains to be had on pricy camera equipment soon, but I doubt that’s any conciliation to the 2,000-odd staff Jessops had on its books. At this rate, the UK high street won’t have much left, other than coffee shops and 99p stores. [BBC]
Image credit: Jessops from Shutterstock
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Damn, Jessops is going.
…and good riddance!
Overpriced and outdated stock with staff who constantly try to up-sell to me.
On the upside, hopefully some cheap cameras!
^this, I’ve been into a jessops once; they wanted something like sixty quid for a 4gb CF card, I laughed and left
In defence of the on-floor staff, that’s sort of their job; every retailer in their right mind would encourage their customers to spend more!
Absolutely, but it speaks to the outmoded nature of the business model. I don’t think anyone’s blaming the staff.
People saying “good riddance” to people’s jobs and livelihoods are making pretty cold statements there.
Someone needs to step in and change the prices online retailers are allowed to use compared to store who have more staff to pay and stores to maintain. Customers who only concentrate on ‘well it’s cheaper online’ are the same customers who won’t have jobs in the long run, which means you won’t have wages to spend online anyway. And then it’ll be people like tax dodging Amazon who won’t have people buying anything either, and then online will decline too.
As for Jessops, people need a specialist store like a camera store when things like £2000 lenses and £5000 camera bodies are on sale. Not only is it better to speak to an expert about these things, but I personally wouldn’t risk spending so much on something online that could either be held in a dodgy warehouse, or not even have a UK warranty. At least buying something so expensive from retail means you have somewhere to go if there’s any problems. The internet is killing this as well as jobs…
If your business does not make money, it is not a business that will survive – quite simply, it’s adapt or die. It’s cruel and harsh, but this is capitalism at its finest.
Damn….I guess no one got my sarcasm
:s
Another specialist retailer killed by discount electrical chains, supermarkets and of course, the internet. I’m hoping the mobile phone stores will be next (because they are so crap) buy I think they make too much money for that.
Second that.
‘Specialist retailer’?
You have BEEN IN to a Jessops recently? Their staff are as bad as Dixons, knowledge wise. I’m sorry so many people have lost their jobs but high street retailers are looking like the coal mine industry in the 1980′s.
“looking like the coal mine industry”
I chortled and then felt sad.
And yet, as a photographer, I’ve found their advice extremely professional, as have my friends in film working for the local BBC. I guess each store is different, and to blame a whole company for one branches lack of knowledge is, again, unfair.
I work in film and TV too. Their staff aren’t that knowledgable and I’ve been in many branches over the years. They were expensive. I always deferred to the nearest Calumet or independent camera dealer. Still sad to see so many lose their jobs.
This is a shame. I’m thinking of getting a DSLR and was relying on being able to try one out rather than just looking at specs online. I now may not get that opportunity
On the other hand, you might get it cheaper.
I have to be quick though!!
Are there no independent camera shops near you?
And no I’m not suggesting you try it there then buy it on amazon, that’s dickish.
There’s still Calumet which has stores in most major UK cities…. http://www.calumetphoto.co.uk
By the way, your headline of “bites the dust” isn’t strictly true. They are still trading and could well be bought out just like other chains have been. This is pretty poor and irresponsible journalism.
“PwC is hoping that it’ll be able to salvage the business, rather than shut up shop completely, but it’s almost inevitable that stores will close.”
Yeah but how many other retail companies that have bit the dust and have been resurrected actually have any life (and thus value) left in them?
Game is a great example: shit before it went under, just as shit if not worse after the buyout.
Or Comet for that matter. I can see HMV going this way soon too.
HMV are a weird shop; they are a music and media retailer that have a monopoly on the high street with regards to music who have said that their business is not focusing on music sales and have diversified into audio hardware, music paraphernalia (T-shirts etc), games, videos, music venues and so on. Weren’t they looking at adding internet cafes in their shops as well?
It might save them in the short term but I think it’s only a matter of time until they succumb.
I have to agree with you with regards to HMV for many reasons but one thing stands out; the ex boss of Jessops is the boss of HMV.
My point is that GAME is still trading. I’m not saying Jessops will be any better, my point was just that Jessops has not bitten the dust yet. They could be bought and continue to trade. Maybe for a year, maybe 6 months, maybe 1 month but the fact is that they are still trading.
I get your point though, only they seem to barely get by.
Retailers filing for administration and getting bought out is like having a stroke: they are never quite the same again.
Actually, as I read it, it depends what happens tonight. They could all be shut tomorrow.
And sadly they were
I just felt the headline was premature.
Whinge! Tut
I’m sad that Jessops is going, but just because it’s the last of the big chains to go doesn’t mean it’s the last camera store. There should still be independent camera stores for professionals, and lets be honest, professionals and serious ametures are probably the only remaining market – why would the snap shooter go into a specialist camera store when they can buy a camera nearly anywhere.
I do hope I am right, and that this helps the few remaining independent stores flourish (and maybe even grow). Independent stores may have more opportunities for professionals as they can be more flexible than chains.
An obvious point, Jessops used to be a small independent retailer in 1935.
Shame.. i used to be a store manager for them about 6 years ago!!
That’s obviously when the rot set in.
I’m sad to see it go…but on the other hand, FIRE SALE!!! (Hopefully)
INDEED, sir.
What will you be flogging off when you get sacked Chris, do let me know your Ebay name so I can keep an eye out for bargains.
Here’s hoping! i need a new Macro lens!
The trouble with Jessops is they acted like Curry/Dixons. If they’d closed some of the smaller store and actually hand staff that, you know, knew about the market they where selling to they may have survived. Take a look at B&H or Adorama in the states, knowledgeable staff and decent prices and they seems to be rather well even against the online world.
An inablity to be more flexible and personal on the pricing and a lack of real photography loving staff just created a Dixons/Currys mentality of box shifting.
I have never seen any improvement in the quality of staff or pricing across the years and in those situations I vote with my feet to stores who care.
In Bristol there are two London Camera Exchange stores who have always provided stellar service, pricing and quality of staff. They’ve always been flexible on price and they know what they’re talking about.
Jessops need to rediscover the personal approach and provide a willingness to be more creative and personal like LCE.
I won’t miss Jessops if it goes. There are other options.
They used to be a decent camera store though. Then they basically turned into Dixons, made it impossible to actually BUY anything (you had to track down a shop assistant with a magnet to get anything that cost more than a tenner of a shelf, and then track down another one to go to one of their ridiculous till points to pay for the bloody thing). Still, it was the best option ’round here after Jacobs closed down.
I’d kill for a branch of LCE up here in the frozen North.
I agree that LCE are a great example to the likes of Jessops. I bought a second-hand Olympus E410 and the staff were friendly, helpful, didn’t try to sell me a brand new Nikon or Canon, they gave me £25 for an old samsung compact and a brand new battery charger worth £30 because the last owner of the E410 hadn’t put the original charger in the box. Brilliant service and fair pricing.
Loving that it says “Advice For Life” on the right hand side
Why would anyone go to Jessops when there’s a Calumet? Ok, there’s only a handful of Calumet stores in the UK but it’s probably worth taking the trip to your nearest if you’re spending 300-400 quid on a camera (or any gadget for that matter). The staff in London, at least the ones I’ve been talking to, know their stuff and especially the stuff they sell. They don’t know everything (I’m telling ya, the Sigma 50mm 1.4 is better than the Canon :-p) but I never left the store dissatisfied.
Jessops on the other hand is the exact opposite, except the one time at the Reading store where the salesperson happened to be a long time photographer and nearing retirement. Most of the staff genuinely don’t know what they’re selling and, seemingly, don’t care. The stock is non-existent. Nowhere near enough variety, and not even enough stock of the products on display. The tagline “but we can order it and it will be here in three working days, Sir” doesn’t really work when the customer is itching to spend money now. And there’s hundreds of current point & shoot cameras but the store in Camberley has about 10 in total. WTF am I supposed to take Jessops seriously?
It almost pains me when a British High Street shop closes while foreign businesses remain open but there’s no way a brick and mortar business can survive like this – the Brits need to re-learn how to do business.
I reckon Curry’s is next. Just a handful of TVs, a few DVD players and some other random stuff – from iPod docks that look like pandas to cheap headphones made out of rubber or chewing gum or something. And the staff are more interested in selling insurance than products or not interested in selling anything at all. Just like Jessops really.
I second your comments about Calumet. Great store!
The last time I went in a Jessops it was because I urgently needed some compressed air.
“Sorry sir, it’s not in stock here or at any other store within 5 miles. We can order it in for you tomorrow”
“Thanks, but if I wanted it tomorrow I’d have ordered it online. Oh, wait…”
I genuinely don’t know what it’s going to take to get high street retailers to realise that their current business models are just not working.
Even on their website, Jessops were more expensive than anywhere I ever looked. The times I did pop in to see if they had something, they never did.
I definitely don’t want a high street of coffee shops, 99p stores and charity shops but there is a better way of doing it than the likes of a lot of current retailers who are quite frankly lazy. There’s nothing to be surprised about with this news for anybody who’s ever been into these shops.
OFFER DECENT CUSTOMER SERVICE (or at least something remotely close to it), and the shoppers will come.
I do feel for those whose jobs are at risk – not a nice thing to go through.
However, Jessops has become nothing more than a snappy snaps print shop with overpriced accessories, empty shelves, a reduced range of cameras outside of digital compacts that can be found cheaper in the local supermarket.
On top of that Jessops’ own website is often a lot cheaper than in store and you could buy it online and collect in store within 30minutes if it was in stock.
News broke on Sky News first :p
Wonder if they’ll have a sale? I fancy a 5D MKIII and some fast L Series glass if there’s decent discounts…
This one I’m actually sorry to see go. I bought a few things from Jessops over the last few years, they were starting to have competitive prices and good stock, at least in London. I guess too little, too late.
Sorry for those losing their jobs, but Jessops were a weird company.
I went in to impulse buy a lens a year or so ago (which they had in stock). A quick check showed that they sold it online for about 10% cheaper.
I asked if I could have it at the online price and they told me that if I ordered it online I could collect it tomorrow from the shop!
So obviously I reminded them that they had it in stock and if I want it tomorrow I could get it delivered to my home tomorrow for even cheaper!
They bet the company on non-savvy people continuing to impulse buy goods at premium prices instead of moving into the new world where online and retail can work together.
Do your research, come to our shop and feel the product in your hands and take it away, paying a slight premium over other online only suppliers.
The last time I went to a store was like when I was 13 being dragged through John Lewis with my mum. Always buy stuff online myself, women love browsing in shops, yet myself and all other guys I know only go to a shop when they know what they want to get. I just find it easier to google it, buy it and collect it after some cunt has thrown it over the fence lol.
I really hope that this will be an opening for independents to come back.
My family runs an independent photographic shop and we are doing relatively well when you consider all the closures there have been in this recession.
People like having a place to go to with people who really know what they’re talking about and people who genuinely care about them as a customer. I think the flexibility of independents appeals to a lot of people too. You can buy a camera from us, and if a week later you find it’s not for you just bring it back and try something else. How many chains can say that?
I think it’s disgusting that Jessops sold vouchers knowing they would not redeem them as well. In fact, vouchers are STILL for sale on their website!