Jessops, the 89-year-old camera shop chain now owned by Peter Jones, the Dragons’ Den star, has been hit with a winding-up petition by HM Revenue & Customs.
The retailer, which has filed for administration three times in four years, faces falling into insolvency again if it fails to pay tax owed.
The disclosure came alongside accounts that showed sales in the year to October 1, 2023, had fallen by 7.5 per cent to £19.97 million, from £21.58 million previously, leading to a loss of £1.2 million. The company’s total net liability widened to £16.9 million.
HMRC has issued a petition asking for a court to shut down Jessops’ operations, according to court filings seen by The Times. The petition can be withdrawn if the company meets its tax liability.
The retailer was founded in 1935 in Leicester by Frank Jessop and grew rapidly under the stewardship of his son Alan as personal photography grew in popularity. It was sold to Bridgepoint Capital after Alan Jessop’s retirement in 1996. The firm attempted to float it twice before deciding to sell to ABN Amro, the Dutch bank, for £116 million in 2002.
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Amro took the company public, but despite pivoting to the fast-growing market for digital cameras, it struggled during the financial crisis and was bought by HSBC, its backer, in a debt-for-equity deal in 2009, with the closure of 80 of about 300 shops.
The company went into administration in 2013, from which it was acquired by PJ Investment Group, Jones’s vehicle. He built up its online sales while reopening stores across the country.
However, Jessops has struggled again in recent years as the rise of smartphones with increasingly powerful cameras cut into high street sales of photography equipment. It is shifting focus again to cater for a new generation of social media influencers creating content for TikTok and Instagram.
It said: “The group’s strong heritage, trust and awareness of the Jessops brands and reputation for quality continues to be the driving force behind our customer loyalty and highly regarded position in the imaging sector.”
Jones, 58, was awarded a CBE in 2009 for services to business, enterprise and charity and has invested millions in start-ups during his nine years sitting on a panel of Dragons’ Den, the BBC show, including Levi Roots’ Reggae Reggae jerk sauce, Bladez Toyz and Boot Buddy, the shoe cleaning gadget.
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The tax office will often engage with companies over unpaid tax and it issues a court order only when its demands are not met through negotiations. It was blocked from serving winding-up petitions during the pandemic and it is now under pressure to become more active after the total tax debt reached £45.9 billion at the end of March last year.
Analysis from PwC has shown that the number of winding up petitions against companies was up by 44 per cent in April, with HMRC, local authorities and businesses all increasing their demands for payment.
Peter Jones and Jessops were contacted for comment.
