In tragic news for anyone who’s ever panic-bought diamanté hoop earrings or got a spontaneous piercing at the checkout, Rochdale’s branch of Claire’s Accessories is set to close its doors for good, marking the end of an era for questionable jewellery decisions and neon scrunchie stockpiles.
The closure comes after a partial rescue deal saw 156 Claire’s UK stores saved by Modella Capital, sparing around 1,000 jobs. Sadly, Rochdale’s Exchange Shopping Centre location didn’t make the cut, presumably because even glitter-covered optimism couldn’t outshine rent costs and retail doom.
No official closure date has been confirmed, but administrators have already started the traditional high-street death dance: closing-down sales. Expect signs in fluorescent pink, discounts shaped like percentages no one can do in their head, and a final stampede on unicorn pencil cases and “Best Friends” necklaces.
Claire’s, which has helped generations of teens accessorise their self-esteem into submission, entered administration in August after its US parent company filed for bankruptcy. Apparently, even selling sequinned phone cases to emotionally fragile tweens couldn’t offset the reality of 2020s retail economics.
Interpath chief exec Will Wright confirmed they’ll “continue to trade the remaining stores for as long as we can,” which is corporate code for “until the last packet of butterfly clips is gone.”
From down the M62, we bid farewell to Rochdale’s sparkliest corner, where fashion met fearlessness, and many a local walked in for a headband and walked out with an accidental nose ring.
