NEWS UPDATE 10 OCTOBER: JESSOPS BACK IN PROFIT
Jessops yesterday opened the first of its ‘stores in stores’, at Newport, South Wales.
The retailer says this will be followed by outlets in Waterlooville, Hampshire, in December; and Maidenhead, Berkshire in January 2015.
Jones described the launch of the ‘Jessops Photography Stores’ as a ‘landmark deal’ for Jessops.
‘It is a natural next step for our multi-channel strategy which is all about giving consumers the choice on how to buy.
‘Our partnership with Sainsbury’s gives us the opportunity to extend our collect at store coverage, as well as bringing some unique new services to Sainsbury’s shoppers – like our plans for a Junior Photography Club for under 18s which will be run by our own expert staff.’
The move will allow Sainsbury’s customers to choose from more than 2,000 Jessops products, and collect them when they do their supermarket shopping.
Jessops says the new outlets will stock ‘best-selling’ cameras, camcorders and accessories.
In-store services are set to include a 25-minute photo lab printing service, instant print kiosks, large-format printing, passport photos, plus a one-hour service for wall art and photo gifts.
Jones added: ‘Building on Jessops reputation for great service will be at the heart of what we offer at the Jessops Photography Stores and a great example of this is that any Sainsbury’s customer who purchases a camera from our “store in store” will receive a free tutorial.’
When he took over Jessops last year, Jones stressed the importance of collect at store to the future of online retailing.
In an interview with Amateur Photographer in March 2013, Jones said: ‘I think “collect at store” is going to be the future of the way that we [customers] order product online…’
An investigation by Amateur Photographer earlier this year highlighted the importance of ‘click-and-collect’ to the survival of shops, in the face of hostile competition from general, online, retailers.
To read Amateur Photographer’s special report on the future of high-street camera shops CLICK HERE
To watch a video report about the survival of high-street stores CLICK HERE
Jessops chairman Peter Jones, at the Oxford Street store in London last year, soon after the entrepreneur took over the chain [Photo credit: Chris Cheesman]
