The family photography business was opened in 1854 by Andrew's great-grandfather, and his own photographic career spans fifty years! He studied at the Regent Street London Polytechnic (then the only photography degree course in the UK) from 1961-1963. After working with Max Warwick at Colour Labs International, during the mid-sixties Andrew created the largest commercial photographic company in East Anglia, GGS Photography, in 1975. He was also a leading aerial and marine photographer, and one of the first to undertake colour photography at weddings. Andrew started with 10 weddings in 1971, and had over 600 with a team of 20 in 1974 alone. In the 80's Andrew began the first chain of mini-labs each with a wedding/portrait studio attached. In recognition, he was made President of the Association of Photographic Laboratories, representing the UK photographic industry in Chicago, speaking at the PhotoMarketing Conference in 1986. Kodak acquired a share in this company and it eventually became the first Kodak Express and Snappy Snap's.
Returning to active photography at 50, during the 1990's, he became a leading wedding and portrait photographer, achieving a Licentiateship and Associateship of the BIPP and MPA. Winning every category in the 1994 East Anglian MPA awards; the BIPP Photograph of the Year and the Fuji and Agfa Portrait Photographer of the Year, he competed and won various awards in New York and Las Vegas where he lectured, as well as speaking engagements in Madrid and Oslo. He was official photographer to the British Olympic Team in Barcelona in 1992, and Atlanta in 1996.
Today Andrew specialises in using his 65 years of photography and business experience to help studios across the UK to become successful. The Barrett & Coe team book more than 10,000 portrait appointments a year for franchised and independent studios through their Baby of the Month, SuperDog of the Month and Platinum schemes. Andrew's Instagram https://www.instagram.com/aecoe1863/ includes regular advice on starting up a portrait studio and making an existing studio more profitable. His family company is celebrating 170 years of taking family, pet and baby portraits.
