ME Group

ME Group International plc, formerly Photo-Me International plc, (LSE: MEGP) based in Epsom, Surrey is a vending machine operator. The company is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index.[2]

ME Group International plc
TypePublic limited company
LSE: MEGP
IndustryVending
Founded1946
HeadquartersEpsom, Surrey, England
Key people
Sir John Lewis (Chairman)
Serge Crasnianski, (CEO)
RevenueIncrease £259.8 million (2022)[1]
Increase £56.7 million (2022)[1]
Increase £38.8 million (2022)[1]
Total assetsIncrease £326.4 million (2022)[1]
Total equityIncrease £132.6 million (2022)[1]
Websiteme-group.com

History
Photo-Me equipment in Castle Court, Northern Ireland

The company has its origins in a compact photograph developing process discovered by Gupp Allen and Ignatius Dunlap Baker in California in 1946.[3] They brought the process to the UK as a business named "Photo-Me" in 1952 and the company was first listed on the London Stock Exchange in 1962.[4]

Serge Crasnianski became chief executive in 1998 and, under his leadership, the company saw a significant increase in its share price as investors were led to believe that photo booths would ultimately provide internet services on the go.[5]

Three directors caused the company embarrassment in February 2007, when they cashed out their share options shortly before the company issued a profit warning: the Financial Services Authority subsequently fined the company £500,000 for not informing the markets in a timely manner.[6] In September 2007, a shareholder revolt over plans to sell off the vending division forced Serge Crasnianski and Vernon Sankey to resign.[7]

Serge Crasnianski was reappointed to the board as a non-executive director in May 2009. He was re-appointed chief executive in May 2010 and immediately implemented the disposal of the company's loss-making wholesale photo-processing labs business.[8]

In November 2016, the company announced that the company had bought the photo division of Asda stores, taking over the supermarket's 191 photo centres and 172 self-service kiosks,[9] and, in December 2019, the company diversified into the laundry business, with a division called "Revolution" providing 24/7 outdoor self-service launderettes.[10]

The company was criticised in the satirical magazine, Private Eye, after it was disclosed that its chairman, John Lewis, had donated approximately £390,000 to the Conservative Party before being appointed a Knight Bachelor in the 2019 New Year Honours.[11]

The company changed its name from Photo-Me to ME Group in August 2022 to reflect its reduced dependence on the photo booth business.[12]

References
  1. "Annual Report 2022" (PDF). ME Group plc. Retrieved 23 May 2023.
  2. "FTSE UK Index Series Annual Review June 2023 – Amendment". FTSE Russell. 6 June 2023. Retrieved 16 June 2023.
  3. "Photo-Me International hands out £11m special dividend". The Scotsman. 4 February 2023. Retrieved 23 May 2023.
  4. "Profit picture dims at Photo-Me". Shares Magazine. 30 May 2018. Retrieved 23 May 2023.
  5. Foley, Stephen (22 June 2005). "The Investment Column: Digital camera revolution is giving Photo-Me a picture-perfect future". The Independent. Retrieved 24 August 2022.
  6. Moore, James. "Photo-Me fine shames its former directors". The Independent. Retrieved 24 August 2022.
  7. "Photo-Me scraps vending division sale". Reuters. 19 September 2007. Retrieved 24 August 2022.
  8. "Photo-Me International PLC, UK - Financial Reports". Archived from the original on 2010-10-19. Retrieved 2010-10-27.
  9. "Photo-Me International buys Asda's photo division". Reuters. Reuters. 23 August 2016.
  10. McMahon, Conor (29 December 2019). "Photo-Me enters picture in self-service laundry sector". The Sunday Times. Times Newspapers. Retrieved 24 August 2022.
  11. "Civil servitude". Private Eye. London: Pressdram Ltd. 11 January 2019.
  12. "Photo-Me splashes out on special dividend". Investors Chronicle. 20 July 2022. Retrieved 23 May 2023.
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