Jessops: A roll of negatives

It has to be one of the worst pieces of PR spin I’ve ever fallen for.

On Monday a spokeswoman for the Leicester-based camera chain Jessops told me: “Jessops remains committed to the high street.” I duly printed this in the Mercury the next day.

The company had just announced it was closing 15 stores as part of what it called “a programme to improve the quality of Jessops’ estate”.

Four days later the business closed all of its 187 shops with the loss of 1,370 jobs after plunging into administration.

It sums up the complete chaos of the past few days for the group, bringing a rather undignified end to a respected high street stalwart.

While the PR team were trying their hardest to convince me and other journalists Jessops had a future, bosses were battling behind the scenes to secure the embattled retailer a financial lifeline.

HSBC, the group’s largest shareholder, had been forced to pump cash into the business to keep it afloat, but poor trading had caused financial problems. Sensing things could only get worse, it seems product suppliers had been unwilling to extend their credit lines.

The past few weeks were pretty frantic, it seems. The announcement of 15 store closures on Monday may have been a last-gasp attempt to get suppliers on side, but it didn’t work.

When PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) were called in as administrators on Wednesday there was confusion about just how many stores the company had and how many staff it employed (PwC initially said it employed 2,000, but it emerged today the figure was nearer to 1,500).

It would be interesting to know how much the firm’s descent was accelerated by the sudden departure of Trevor Moore, who stepped down as chief executive in July to head music and DVD chain HMV.

At the time Mr Moore was credited with having turned around the struggling business during his three-year spell in charge. But his exit seemed to have rattled chairman Martyn Everett and I wonder how much his experience as a retail strategist and tough deal-maker was missed.

Many shoppers have questioned why Jessops relocated their Leicester store from Granby Street to Gallowtree Gate in October if they were in such distress.

I think it was part of the 78-year-old firm’s decision to go for all or nothing in the run-up to Christmas. Unfortunately, it was too little, too late.