AN ICONIC 90s jewellery brand is set to close one of its shops for good today after the chain tumbled into administration.
Claire’s is set to close its shop in Westgate shopping centre, Oxford, this weekend.
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Claire’s is closing another popular store today in a blow to shoppersCredit: Refer to source
A sign spotted in the window on Friday said the shop had only two days remaining, according to the Oxford Mail.
It’s a similar story at other Claire’s shops across the UK as dozens are set to shut forever.
Among the shops that have already pulled their shutters down is the branch at Yates Shopping Centre in Bristol, which shut a fortnight ago.
The brand closed another store in Swindon on April 11.
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Meanwhile, several other shops have launched huge 70% off closing down sales as they tried to shift stock in their final hours.
Claire’s first collapsed into administration in August after its US parent company went bankrupt.
At the time it stopped online orders and cancelled those that had not yet been shipped.
The company was then bought by investment firm Modella Capital, which struck a rescue deal to save 156 UK stores and 1,000 jobs.
But it was not enough to save the struggling firm.
The glitzy jewellery chain collapsed into administration again in January, with 150 stores and 1,000 jobs put at risk.
Administrators from Kroll were appointed to handle the insolvency of the firm’s UK and Irish operations.
What does going into administration mean?
WHEN a company enters into administration, all control is passed to an appointed administrator.
The administrator has to leverage the company’s assets and business to repay creditors any outstanding debt.
Once a company enters administration, a “moratorium” is put in place which means no legal action can be taken against it.
Administrators write to your creditors and Companies House to say they’ve been appointed.
They try to stop the company from being liquidated (closing down), and if it can’t it pays as much of a company’s debt from its remaining assets.
The administrator has eight weeks to write a statement explaining what they plan to do to move the business forward.
This must be sent to creditors, employees and Companies House and invite them to approve or amend the plans at a meeting.
A Notice of Intention is used to inform concerning parties that a company intends to enter administration.
It is a physical document which is submitted to court, usually by directors aiming to prevent a company from being liquidated.
Like with a standard administration process, a Notice of Intention stops creditors from taking out any legal action over a company while they try and rectify the business.
