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| Jessops camera stores to close with loss of 1,370 jobs | Jessops camera stores to close with loss of 1,370 jobs |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| High Street camera retailer Jessops is to shut all of its stores, resulting in the loss of about 1,370 jobs. | High Street camera retailer Jessops is to shut all of its stores, resulting in the loss of about 1,370 jobs. |
| Administrator PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), appointed this week, said all 187 stores in the UK would shut at the end of trading on Friday. | Administrator PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), appointed this week, said all 187 stores in the UK would shut at the end of trading on Friday. |
| More jobs would be lost at the head office in Leicester, it added. | More jobs would be lost at the head office in Leicester, it added. |
| Jessops became the first High Street casualty of 2013, after a raft of firms fell into administration in 2012, including Comet and Clinton Cards. | Jessops became the first High Street casualty of 2013, after a raft of firms fell into administration in 2012, including Comet and Clinton Cards. |
| PwC was appointed administrator on Wednesday, and at the time said there might be some store closures. | |
| It came after talks this week between Jessops and its lender and suppliers broke down after a poor Christmas. | |
| The camera chain was founded in Leicester in 1935 by Frank Jessop. | |
| In recent years, it has been hit by increasing competition from supermarkets and internet retailers. | |
| Rob Hunt, joint administrator at PwC, said it was an "extremely sad day for Jessops and its employees". | Rob Hunt, joint administrator at PwC, said it was an "extremely sad day for Jessops and its employees". |
| He added that the decision to shut down the business came after discussions with suppliers "around their support for ongoing trading", which was not forthcoming. | He added that the decision to shut down the business came after discussions with suppliers "around their support for ongoing trading", which was not forthcoming. |
| "The stock will be collected over the coming days and returned to a central warehouse. It will be returned to suppliers if they are entitled to it. As a consequence of the closure, Jessops is no longer able to accept returned product from customers," Mr Hunt said. | "The stock will be collected over the coming days and returned to a central warehouse. It will be returned to suppliers if they are entitled to it. As a consequence of the closure, Jessops is no longer able to accept returned product from customers," Mr Hunt said. |
| "We will continue to ensure that employees are paid as they assist us during the closure." | "We will continue to ensure that employees are paid as they assist us during the closure." |
| He told the BBC that the closure announcement was "a horrible end to a very intensive couple of days". | |
| In 2009, Jessops managed to avoid administration by agreeing a debt for equity swap with its lender, HSBC, that saw it taken off the stock market. |