Stores closures and job losses are to hit the greetings card retail chain iCandy as the struggling company appoints administrators.
The firm, which was founded by Clinton Cards boss Clinton Lewin, has appointed FRP Advisory to act as administrator.
They have also confirmed 22 job cuts and the closure of four UK stores.
The remaining 10 stores and nearly 80 staff members will keep continue to trade as usual as a buyer is sought for the business.
“iCandy has been a bold move for its founders who made a real success of braving regional high street from its inception at the end of 2012 – just when many retailers had given up the ghost in the wake of the financial crisis – right up until late last year,” joint administrator Glyn Mummery said.
READ MORE: Clintons parent company: “No plans to undertake a major store closure program”
“After the demise of Clintons, his family gift card firm, Clinton Lewin took his experience and personal savings to help carve out a niche with iCandy’s innovative range of gifts across shops in the South East.
“Many of the iCandy stores continue to trade well from desirable locations in the more thriving market towns of Essex, Hertfordshire and Suffolk and they continue to capture the purses of shoppers looking to spend within the wider gifts market.”
Its demise is attributed to “financial pressures” stemming from rising business rates and dwindling consumer spend.
The retailer is thought to have unsecured liabilities of around £2 million. Lewin is the company‘s largest unsecured creditor with liabilities of around £700,000.
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