Jewellery and accessories chain Claire’s is closing its final UK stores on Tuesday with the loss of more than 1,000 jobs and ending three decades on British high streets.
Sources said staff at Claire’s, which had 154 stores when it collapsed in January, had been asked to pack up the final stock and equipment with the remaining outlets to formally close on Tuesday after successive waves of closures in recent weeks.
Administrators at Kroll confirmed that all remaining shops ceased trading on Monday and “all store employees have been advised of redundancy”.
The move does not affect the retailer’s 356 concessions, including many in Asda stores, and its head office.
Talks are thought to be continuing to find a new owner for the Claire’s brand in the UK with French entrepreneur Julien Jarjoura, who controls the brand in several mainland European countries.
Claire’s collapsed into administration in January just a few months after about half the chain – 154 stores – had been rescued by Modella Capital in August.
The deal had saved about 1,300 jobs at the time. The 145 branches not bought by Modella were closed by administrators in late November.
In March, Kroll said 15 of the remaining 154 stores had closed, cutting more than 100 jobs, including at its head office, as it continued to try to find a buyer.
It said on Monday: “We understand an interested party is in discussion with a number of landlords with a view to taking new leases for some of the sites.”
The future of the brand in the UK is unclear. The Claire’s UK website has already been “paused” with customers unable to buy products through it.
The jewellery and ear-piercing retailer’s UK arm had struggled as sales fell in the face of competition from online retailers such as Amazon as well as the rise of sales via social media such as TikTok.
US-based Claire’s arrived in the UK in 1996 through the acquisition of accessories chain Bow Jangles.
According to local newspaper reports, stores that closed in recent weeks included Cheshire Oaks, Sutton Coldfield, Stockport, Watford and Bangor, while Swindon closed last weekend. Stores in Romford, Oxford and Chester were also reported to be plastered in closing down signs.
Its UK arm’s difficulties increased after Claire’s in the US and Canada filed for bankruptcy for the second time in seven years.
Founded in 1961 in Chicago, Claire’s has become staple in British shopping centres and high streets since the 1990s. The group, which operated more than 2,750 stores across 17 countries in North America and Europe, has been particularly popular among teenagers.
In a report published in March, Kroll said it did not expect to pay out to unsecured creditors, including suppliers, landlords and staff, who are collectively owed £10.6m. It added it was likely that Modella, which has secured debts of £5.5m, would receive at least some cash.
Separately, Modella is expected to launch a major restructure of TG Jones, the former high street division of WH Smith that it bought just under a year ago, by mid-May.
Sources said that up to 100 of TG Jones’s 456 stores could close under a plan called a “cram down”, an insolvency procedure that requires court approval. Modella agreed not to restructure TG Jones for a year under the terms of its deal with WH Smith.
However, sources said it was likely to kick off before the late June deadline because “the need is great” and there were concerns about the business becoming insolvent.
One source said stores with Post Offices within them were likely to be “relatively sacrosanct” as they were more difficult to close in the face of political interest and were also better performing because of regular visitors.
The difficulties at TG Jones comes after the collapse of fellow Modella-owned Claire’s and The Original Factory Shop in January. Its Hobbycraft chain also closed numerous stores under a restructure last year.
The Original Factory Shop chain, which had 140 outlets and employed 1,200 people at the time, went into administration led by Interpath in January, and closed all remaining stores on 4 April.
