Fashion accessories chain Claire’s has collapsed into administration in the UK and Ireland, putting 2,150 jobs at risk.
The company has 278 shops in the UK and 28 in Ireland, but has been struggling with falling sales and fierce competition.
Claire’s said all outlets will continue trading while it considers “the best possible path forward”.
Its administrators from Interpath said they will “assess options for the company”, which could include selling the business to “secure a future for this well-loved brand”.
Claire’s chief executive, Chris Cramer, said the “difficult” decision to appoint administrators allows its stores to remain open.
Claire’s had been particularly popular for its ear piercing services and was a common stop in the early 2000s for tweens and teens during weekend shopping trips in malls across the world.
Its stores were known for their colourful selection of hair bands, earrings, jewellery, and occasionally for toys like slime and fluffy toys.
The company will no longer be issuing refunds nor accepting online orders.
It will also not be delivering orders which have not yet shipped, but says customers are only charged on the dispatch of items, so customers with outstanding online orders should not be out of pocket.
Claire’s said that, in cases where it cannot issue refunds, customers should check with their card issuer for other avenues for refunds.
‘Part of my childhood’
Caitlin, 21 (left) and Amy, 16 (right) from Oxfordshire were shopping at Claire’s in central London on Wednesday and said the news was “quite sad because people have been going there since they were little.”
“It’s a part of my childhood personally, said Caitlin, said she used to go a lot when she was around 11 years old.
“It’s aimed towards younger people, and I don’t know that there’s something else on the market that does that. It’s like a rainbow of things in there, and I don’t think a kid’s going to be doing online shopping.”
They both came out of the shop not having bought anything, as Amy had second thoughts about getting a piercing.
‘Increased competition’
The move in the UK comes after it filed for bankruptcy in the US earlier this month, where the firm said it was suffering from people moving away from bricks-and-mortar shops. The firm has $690m (£508m) of debt.
The company operates under two brand names, Claire’s and Icing, and is owned by a group of firms, including investment giant Elliott Management.
Similar to its UK administration process, the firm said all of its US shops will remain open until an alternative future is found.
Claire’s is the latest casualty in several shop-heavy firms that have suffered from the decline of the High Street as people move more towards shopping online.
In its US filing, Mr Cramer blamed “increased competition, consumer spending trends and the ongoing shift away from brick-and-mortar retail” for the declaration of bankruptcy, as well as “debt obligations” and wider economic turmoil.
He said on Wednesday that it was a “challenging period” and that “in the UK, taking this step will allow us to continue to trade the business while we explore the best possible path forward”.
Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown, said the popularity of the Claire’s brand had “waned”.
While stores were once great for brand recognition, she said younger people now pay more attention to brands making their mark online.
“The chain is now faced with stiff competition from TikTok and Insta shops, and by cheap accessories sold by fast fashion giants like Shein and Temu,” she said.
Other analysts said many accessory shop chains like Claire’s have been hit by US President Donald Trump’s tariffs imposed on China and its neighbours.
“A lot of that category is sourced from Asia, and any increase in import costs hits hard when your price points are low and margins are tight,” retail analyst Catherine Shuttleworth said at the time of Claire’s US bankruptcy filing.
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