16 hours ago
Faarea MasudBusiness reporter
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All Claire’s standalone stores in the UK and Ireland have stopped trading after the accessories chain’s financial woes saw it fall into administration twice in a year.
Administrators Kroll said 154 stores have shut and more than 1,300 staff have been “notified of redundancy”, though its 350 concessions will remain open.
Known for its colourful shop fronts and racks of jewellery, bracelets and its ear piercing services, the brand’s bright purple branding was a familiar sight for millions of teens during a Saturday shop.
But it suffered in the face of competition from cheaper, online brands such as Shein and Temu.
Changing consumer tastes also spelled the death knell for the retailer, which has struggled like many High Street firms.
Kroll said: “As of 27 April, all Claire’s standalone stores in UK and Ireland have ceased trading. All store employees have been advised of redundancy.”
Claire’s owners Modella Capital said in January that part of the reason it had to put Claire’s into administration was “alarming” low Christmas trading that left it in a “vulnerable” position.
It also blamed the climate on the High Street, which it said “remains extremely challenging”, adding that government policy had caused a tough trading environment by raising staffing costs such as National Insurance Contributions.
‘Juvenile’
But Claire’s problems are more long-term, fashion expert Priya Raj told the BBC.
“We’ve moved away from novelty, colourful jewellery for the most part, which is what Claire’s are best known for.
“If we think about teens today, they’re looking at social media for influence on what to buy, rather than their local High Street or shopping centre.
“So naturally their tastes are evolving into what’s mainstream right now – minimal jewellery, sometimes chunky, sometimes with a more curated look – basically not the cutesy, juvenile look that Claire’s is known for.”
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Claire’s was not only facing competition from online – other bricks-and-mortar competitors ate into its space too.
Primark and Superdrug compete heavily with Claire’s value offering, says retail analyst Catherine Shuttleworth.
Plus, she added, young people had more places to spend their money, including spending on desserts, coffee, matcha and bubble tea.
“Competition has never been tougher for Gen Alpha shoppers,” she said. “They are the generation of social shoppers – changing the way they buy and expecting more from the brands that they interact with.
“This age group now have so many options to spend their cash that shops just selling ‘stuff’ simply doesn’t cut it.”
