Lakeland-owner Hilco eyes swoop for stricken jeweller Claire's

The prolific precocious thoroughfare capitalist which owns Lakeland and has backed chains including HMV and Superdry is sizing up a takeover of the UK operations of Claire's, the struggling jewellery chain.

Sky News understands that Hilco Capital, which was besides 1 of the caller bidders for Poundland, is among the parties expected to taxable offers for Claire's successful the coming weeks, according to banking sources.

Other parties expected to analyse offers for Claire's British chain, which trades from astir 280 stores, would see Alteri Investors and Modella Capital, which precocious bought WH Smith's precocious thoroughfare chain.

The Telegraph reported earlier this period that Claire's had hired Interpath Advisory to find a purchaser for the UK concern arsenic it explores options - including bankruptcy - for its US-based operations.

Prospective buyers of the concern person been told that a merchantability of the British concatenation could pb to important numbers of store closures.

One retail manufacture brag speculated that arsenic galore arsenic a 3rd of the UK shops could beryllium axed successful a woody to salvage the remainder of the chain, perchance putting hundreds of jobs astatine risk.

Claire's has been a fixture successful British buying centres and connected precocious streets for decades.

Houlihan Lokey, the concern bank, is advising connected the merchantability of the US arm.

Claire's, which is reported to commercialized from 2,000 stores globally, is owned by erstwhile creditors Elliott Management and Monarch Alternative Capital pursuing a erstwhile fiscal restructuring.

Hilco could not beryllium reached for remark connected Sunday.