Claire’s has been a staple of the high street for decades, but after being saved from the chop thanks to a deal to buy the company, nearly 150 shops are about to shut their doors
One of the UK’s most recognisable high street shops could be about to shut up shop as nearly 150 branches close their doors. This comes despite a breakthrough deal that helped to save the business from going into further administration.
Claire’s Accessories has agreed that a total of 145 shops will have to be shut as the current administrators announced that another 156 shops on the high street were going to be sold to investment group Modella Capital. This meant that 1,000 jobs were going to be saved, in theory.
Despite the good news for thousands of workers at the retail shop, the deal did not include the other 145, which have now been confirmed to be closing for good. As a result, thousands of Claire’s employees are set to lose their jobs after no one stepped forward to buy the remaining shops.
The Sun reports that from this weekend, affected shops are set to start their closing-down sales, with 20% being taken off the price in order to sell any remaining stock at the premises. Exact closing dates, however, will vary from one store to the next.
Interpath, the administrators looking after the business, said they were doing everything they could to keep the shops doing. Will Wright, Interpath’s UK CEO said in a statement on Monday (September 29) that they want to secure the business’ future and make sure people still have their jobs.
“Our intention is to continue to trade the remaining portfolio of stores for as long as we can, while we explore the options available,” Will explained. But despite their best efforts, administrators could not find a buyer to snap up the sites, which now means the remaining stores are set to shut down permanently.
Claire’s went into administration back on August 13, right after its American branch filed for bankruptcy the previous week. The US part of the company has been able to find a buyer for 950 of the shops it currently owns across the states.
Their good fortunes were bolstered when on Monday, the Modella Capital group agreed to take over 156 of the shops in the UK, working together with Claire’s parent company in the US, Ames Watson. But despite the deal being done, some job losses and store closures are expected as the groups works with landlords to decide what stores can remain open.
Staff working at the high street giant have been told decisions will be made as fast as possible, but the long-term future of the company remains unclear. Speaking on the decision to snap up the stores, the managing director of Modella Capital, Joe Price said it did not want to see a major titan of the British high street fade away.
“As a firm, we strongly believe that this much-loved brand deserves the chance to remain on the High Street in the UK and Ireland,” Joe said. “The issues that Claire’s is facing are significant, and we will need to work collaboratively with all interested parties if our proposed rescue plan is to succeed.”
This is not the first such acquisition that Modella Capital has made, helping to buy other major players on the high street. On top of Claire’s, the business has bought up WHSmith stores across the country, as well as Paperchase and Hobbycraft.
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