Future of Wigan store in doubt as Claire's Accessories enters administration for the second time in five months

Claire’s Accessories, which opened its branch in the Grand Arcade shopping centre in January 2023, was once a thriving High Street brand.

Claire’s sought a buyer in August after its US owner filed for bankruptcy.

It was purchased six weeks later by Modella Capital as part of a deal that resulted in the loss of approximately 1,000 jobs and the closure of 145 retail stores.

Now Modella, which also owns the Original Factory shop, has said both retailers will enter insolvency proceedings in the UK and Ireland, with the administration expected to provide breathing space to secure a new buyer.

The investment firm said tough trading conditions and “alarming” Christmas sales levels had left both businesses in a vulnerable position.

A spokesperson for Modella said: “This has been a very tough decision.

"We have worked intensively in an effort to save both businesses, having made last-ditch attempts to rescue them, but neither has a realistic possibility of trading profitably again.”

Modella said the chains were ‘"highly vulnerable’” even before it acquired them, citing challenges including conditions on the high street, which it said “remain extremely challenging”, as well as government policy.

The two retailers are the latest casualties of a difficult trading environment, with high street sales declining as shoppers increasingly move online, abandoning long-established brands burdened by the high costs of maintaining physical stores.

Claire’s currently operates around 154 stores and employs 1,355 staff.