Photography retailer Jessops collapsed into administration in January with debts of £81 million, it has been reported.
Creditors owed millions will receive no payments from the retailer, according to The Sunday Telegraph which reported that largest single lender HSBC was owed £28.8 million at the time of Jessops collapse while Government body the Pension Protection Fund (PPF), which has £2.5 million of loans to Jessops, is “unlikely to see any money”.
Such information appeared within a document sent to creditors last week by administrator PriceWaterhouseCoopers, a copy of which was seen by the newspaper.
Jessops was saved from administration nearly four years ago as increasing competition within the market saw sales slide and HSBC became its largest shareholder along with the PPF, which viewed £2.5 million loan notes as “worthless”.
Manufacturers including Nikon and Canon, which expressed “disappointment” at the retailer‘s collapse earlier this year, were left with £42.6 million in unpaid debt from Jessops, though £23 million of that has now been returned through stock thanks to the suppliers‘ retention of title.
In February, it was announced that Jessops had been bought by a number of buyers including entrepreneur Peter Jones and it has now been revealed that the sale was completed for £1.65 million.
