High street fashion brand shuts city centre store with 23 more at risk

Around 200 jobs are under threat as high street fashion retailer Quiz Clothing called in administrators.

The company, which recently saw its shares removed from the London Stock Exchange, may be forced to shut down 23 of its branches.

One has already ceased trading in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, much to the disappointment of local shoppers.

According to the Peterborough Telegraph, a clearance sale launched last week at the store Queensgate Shopping Centre store before it locked its doors for good on Tuesday, February 18.

Posting on Facebook, one disappointed customer said: “There’s nothing in Peterborough Shopping Centre now…might as well pull it down.” Another branded that closure “another nail in the coffin for Queensgate.”

The retailer, which sells its products through standalone stores and major high-street shops like New Look and Debenhams, is likely to utilise a pre-pack administration deal, enabling the founders to regain control of a streamlined version of the business.

Orion Retail, a subsidiary of Zandra – a company controlled by the founding Ramzan family, will acquire the remaining assets.

According to The Sun, Orion will then take over 42 outlets previously occupied by Zandra. Meanwhile, Teneo, an insolvency practitioner, has been appointed as administrator.

Quiz currently employs around 1,500 people across 60 UK stores. However, Sky News reports that 200 of them could face redundancy.

Sheraz Ramzan, CEO of QUIZ, said: “The Board took the difficult decision to appoint administrators to Zandra Retail Limited in light of the continuing challenging trading conditions impacting the Group’s performance. He added: “We are deeply sorry to those affected by the store closures, including our retail colleagues.”

The brand has 59 remaining sites in the UK following the loss of the Peterborough branch, though the exact location of those at risk of closing remains uncertain.

Quiz stores at risk of closure in the UK

1. Athlone
2. Bracknell
3. Brighton
4. Basingstoke
5. Belfast Castlecourt
6. Birmingham Merryhill
7. Bristol Cribbs Causeway
8. Carlisle
9. Castleford Junction 32
10. Craigavon
11. Derby
12. Derry
13. Dundee
14. Dublin Liffey Valley
15. Doncaster
16. Eastbourne
17. Enniskillen
18. Exeter
19. Falkirk
20. Fareham
21. Glasgow Buchanan Galleries
22. Glasgow Braehead
23. Glasgow Clydebank
24. Glasgow Silverburn
25. Grimsby
26. Glasgow St Enochs
27. Glasgow Fort
28. Hanley
29. Hull
30. Irvine
31. Leeds White Rose
32. Livingston
33. Leicester
34. Liverpool One
35. Milton Keynes
36. Mansfield
37. Maidstone
38. Manchester Arndale
39. Motherwell
40. Newbridge
41. Newtownabbey
42. Newry
43. Northampton
44. Norwich, Castle Mall
45. Newcastle Metro
46. Plymouth
47. Portsmouth
48. Preston
49. Romford
50. Sligo
51. Stirling
52. Swansea
53. Southampton
54. Sheffield Meadowhall
55. Telford
56. Tallaght
57. Thurrock Lakeside
58. Warrington
59. Watford