Jessops PLC goes into administration

Jessop PLC the high street retailer that started in the 1930s in the city I live in, is no more.

Friday 11th January 2013 @ 4:30 was the official date when all the stores shutters where pulled down for the last time, all that remains is for the staff to pack up the remaining stock. Not a very fitting end for a company once synonymous with both prosumer and consumer photography.

I will always be greatful to them, they offered me my first ever retail job which saw me through 3 years of University. The people I worked with helped me learn about compostion, shutter speeds, apertures and to not get naked pictures developed in a hight street store. Priceless! Its only because of them, that this website exists. Having ignited the shutter bug hobby within me, I needed to create a site to develop certain IT skills and photo-manuals.com was a product of that learning.

In some respects, there demise was expected. They no longer appealed to the prosumer market, how could they hire competent staff when they only pay ~£6 an hour (there where a few, but not many, a lot didn't know there appeture from there arse). Then they lost the consumer market as well. First the internet came along, undercutting prices, offering deals that Jessops claimed they couldn't match (yeah right!), this was re-inforced by a recession. Then with the ominous march of smartphones with integrated 8MP+ cameras, 1080 video recording and the ability to upload directly to the internet, the death knell could be quietly heard in the background.

It was a sad day, but maybe this dog has had its day...