UK consumers bought 46% fewer basic digital cameras, largely driven by competition from cameras built into smartphones, according to GfK Retail and Technology UK Ltd.
GfK classes a basic ‘point-and-shoot’ model as a fixed-lens compact with an optical zoom under 10x.
In value terms, the UK’s photo sector fell 20.7%, month-on-month, with online sales slumping 10.4% compared to January 2012.
A GfK spokesman said: ‘The loss of a major retailer shows how much this sector is suffering – not helped by the fact that the key product category (digital cameras) remains under fierce cannibalisation from today’s mobile and smartphones.’
The UK photo market fell 9.2% in value for the year to January 2013, compared to the previous 12 months.
The figures are contained in GfK Market-i, a report designed to give an insight into the UK’s retail durables market.
Jessops closed its entire high-street store network on 11 January, two days after falling into administration.
