Johnson Service Group
| Company type | Public company |
|---|---|
| LSE: JSG | |
| Industry | Textile rental |
| Founded | 1817 |
| Headquarters | , UK |
Key people | Jock Lennox (Chairman) Peter Egan (CEO) |
| Revenue | €535.4 million (2025)[1] |
| €58.8 million (2025)[1] | |
| €37.1 million (2025)[1] | |
| Website | www |
Johnson Service Group is a specialist textile rental business based in Preston Brook, Cheshire, England. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index.[2]
History
The business was established by William Johnson as a firm of silk dyers in Bold Street, Liverpool in 1817. Work started on a new head office at Mildmay Road off Stanley Road in Bootle under the direction of the then chairman, Benjamin Sands Johnson, in 1896.[3]
In 1920, Johnson Brothers acquired two dry cleaning companies, Jas Smith & Son and Flinn & Son Ltd of Brighton and, through further expansion over the next sixty years, became the largest dry cleaning organisation in the UK.[4] The company was renamed Johnson Group Cleaners in 1953.[5] A major competitor, Sketchley, launched a series of hostile, but ultimately unsuccessful, takeover bids for Johnson Group Cleaners between 1977 and 1985.[6][7]
After acquiring Stalbridge Linen Services in 1995, the twelve operating companies which made up Johnson Group Cleaners were restructured into just two businesses, Johnsons Cleaners and Johnsons Textile Services.[8] The company was renamed Johnson Service Group in 1998.[5]
Johnson Service Group acquired its competitor, the Sketchley Dry Cleaning business, comprising 103 branches, from the then-owners, Timpson, for £1 in May 2004.[9] In July 2006, Johnson Service Group announced its intention to sell its dry cleaning business, including the Sketchley and Jeeves of Belgravia brands.[10]
The company relocated from Bootle to Preston Brook in Cheshire in 2007[11][12] and was the subject of an initial public offering on the Alternative Investment Market in June 2008.[13]
In January 2015, the company announced the closure of 109 of their 307 remaining branches; the reason given was that the 109 shops' leases had come to an end and it would not be viable to renew them.[14] Then, in January 2017, Johnson Service Group sold the remaining 198 Johnson Cleaners stores, along with Jeeves of Belgravia and Jeeves International, to Timpson.[15]
The company's listing was transferred from the Alternative Investment Market to the main market in August 2025.[16]
References
- ^ a b c "Annual Results 2025". Johnson Service Group. Retrieved 3 March 2026.
- ^ "FTSE UK Index Series: Quarterly Review September 2025". FTSE Russell. 3 September 2025. Retrieved 19 September 2025.
- ^ "Golden Jubilee for the J. B. "Journal": Mirror of the vast growth of Bootle Company". The Times. 10 May 1957. Retrieved 28 August 2025.
- ^ "Johnsons Cleaners". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 28 August 2025.
- ^ a b "Johnson Service Group". Companies House. Retrieved 28 August 2025.
- ^ "Johnson Group Cleaners Ltd". Hansard. 8 March 1977. Retrieved 28 August 2025.
- ^ "Learning from high street failure". The Telegraph. 16 May 2010. Retrieved 28 August 2025.
- ^ "Stalbridge Linen Hire & Laundry Services" (PDF). Footprint. 1 April 2014. p. 26. Retrieved 28 August 2025.
- ^ "Dry cleaner Johnson snaps up rival Sketchley". Estates Gazette. 19 May 2004. Retrieved 28 August 2025.
- ^ "Johnson's dry cleaning business put up for sale". The Guardian. 22 July 2006. Retrieved 28 August 2025.
- ^ "Sovini aims for 123 Bootle homes". Place Northwest. 21 July 2021. Retrieved 28 August 2025.
- ^ "Former Johnsons Cleaners headquarters to be turned into new homes". Liverpool Echo. 15 August 2024. Retrieved 28 August 2025.
- ^ "Johnson Service Group plans move to Main Market". Sharecast. 4 June 2005. Retrieved 28 August 2025.
- ^ "Drycleaning firm Johnson closing 307 shops". The Guardian. 6 January 2015. Retrieved 28 August 2025.
- ^ "Timpson's buys Johnson's dry cleaning arm". The Telegraph. 5 January 2017. Retrieved 28 August 2025.
- ^ "Johnson Service Group shares transfer to London Stock Exchange Main Market". The Business Desk. 1 August 2025. Retrieved 28 August 2025.