End of the road: All Jessops stores now closed for good

End of the road: All Jessops stores now closed for good
Administrators had battled to save the company

Troubled photography retailer Jessops quickly disappeared into the abyss on Friday, with all 187 of its UK stores closing for good.

The Leicester-based high street chain, founded in 1935, had called in the administrators late last week in a last-ditch attempt to save the business.

Administrators PricewaterhouseCooper (PwC) had held talks with the company's suppliers in the hope that Jessops could continue trading and keep some stores open, but the discussions proved unfruitful.

As a result PwC made the decision to immediately close down all stores at the close of play on Friday, meaning the loss of 1,370 jobs across the UK.

No fire sale

Unlike the recent disintegration of the Comet chain, there'll be no fire sale for those looking to profit from Jessops' demise by snagging a cheap snapper. Instead, all stock will be returned.

The administrators also announced that it will not be accepting returns, so if you received an unwanted camera over the festive period, there's no hope of sending it back.

Rob Hunt, joint administrator at PwC, told the BBC that the closure was "extremely sad day for Jessops and its employees" and "a horrible end to a very intensive couple of days."

Jessops had narrowly avoided administration in 2009 and made a crippling £5.2m loss in 2012.

In recent years, the company had been boxed out by cheaper online alternatives and supermarkets and the vast improvement in smartphone cameras.

Via BBC

Chris Smith

A technology journalist, writer and videographer of many magazines and websites including T3, Gadget Magazine and TechRadar.com. He specializes in applications for smartphones, tablets and handheld devices, with bylines also at The Guardian, WIRED, Trusted Reviews and Wareable. Chris is also the podcast host for The Liverpool Way. As well as tech and football, Chris is a pop-punk fan and enjoys the art of wrasslin'.