Jessops, the camera retailer owned by the Dragons’ Den star Peter Jones, has been hit with a winding-up petition by HM Revenue & Customs.
The company, which has struggled to turn a profit, has filed for administration three times in four years and now faces falling into insolvency again if it fails to pay tax owned to HMRC.
Jones bought Jessops out of insolvency in 2013 and controls the camera retailer through a Jersey-based holding company, PJIG Holdings Limited.
He expanded the chain by opening 60 stores across the country. The business has struggled in recent years as the rise of smartphones has hit high street sales of photography equipment and consumers have switched to buying electronics on Amazon. Jessops’ sales fell 7.5 per cent