Claire’s Accessories goes under - blaming Rachel Reeves for the 1,300 jobs lost

[ProudAmberTurtle]

Claire’s Accessories has just gone bust - and over 1,300 people have lost their jobs.

I know it’s overpriced plastic and the piercing guns were always a bit controversial, but it’s been a total rite of passage for many girls. First earrings, birthday parties and that excitement of spending their pocket money on some glittery rubbish... it feels like another bit of childhood nostalgia is being wiped out.

But what’s really grating is why. According to the owner, the final nail in the coffin was the massive hike in National Insurance contributions from Rachel Reeves. It wasn't the only factor obviously - the high street is doing very badly, but it was the decisive factor.

How can a business that relies on young, part-time staff survive when their overheads have just been hiked through the roof? It’s not just the big brands; it’s the independent shops too. We’re going to be left with nothing but vape shops and empty units at this rate.

There was a report yesterday that Starmer will sack Reeves if the local elections go badly for him. Why can't they both go whatever the result?

Why can't they both go whatever the result?

I would love to get through a whole term of one prime minister. Hasn’t been done since the end of the coalition government.

Claire’s Accessories was shockingly overpriced and did not read the room with other shops undercutting them significantly for the same products. My adult child has loved Hello Kitty since she was little and I saw a Stanley type cup in there. It was £40. Wtf? It was just an in house product with stickers on it. Loads and loads of tat that was far too expensive. I’m surprised it lasted as long as it did.

I'm not fan of Reeves but I'm not sure she is to blame here. The kind of very cheap jewellery and accessories sold in Claire's can be got even cheaper online, and they're never going to make a fortune from the children's market selling cheap bits and pieces. Plus they were in competition with just about every cheap high street clothes shop that sells its own costume jewellery but has other products to back that up.

Clare’s has been going for ages.

Overpriced plastic rubbish. Beaten by online prices for plastic rubbish.

I thought they went bust in America (plus other countries?) too?
Can't blame that on National Insurance 🤷

Claire’s staff pierced babies. Actual babies. Even if they were crying.

Babies. WTF?

I’m glad they’re gone.

Didn’t their equally dreadful parents demand they did it

Their model just doesn’t add up when they have to pay for prime high street premises, and yet you can get even more terrible tat for even less on Temu or Shein.

It’s a casualty of online shopping, like so many others. Look at the likes of Debenhams - that went long before this government, for the same reasons.

Yes.

But they should’ve been told no.

The piercers I know (who work in tattoo shops) would say no to piercing babies and toddlers.

Claire’s didn’t say no. They just wanted the £££.

They were charging far too much for nasty tat and plastic shite that will outlast us all.

Not a loss and bugger all to do with Rachel Reeves!

They sold Temu/Ali Baba stuff for huge mark ups. Once those companies entered the consumer marketplace, they lost their hold because nobody needed to go there, it could all be ordered on a phone in ten seconds flat for pennies.

Nothing to do with making a political point, it's just pure economics. Their market disappeared.

I think Claire’s survived for so long because, even though it was terrible tat that you could get far cheaper online, it was a place that kids could go with their mum at the weekend to spend their pocket money. The product was there in their hand instantly.
The target age group for Claire’s doesn’t want to wait for a set of hair bobbles and a bracelet to arrive in 2 weeks time from Temu, they want it now.
The one in our local town was always heaving with kids at weekends and holidays.

I totally agree, so expensive! My DD would pop in now and again and leave empty handed as they would want £15 for 3 lip balms. I sometimes thought I’d pick up birthday presents for DD’s friends in there but, again, wouldn’t buy anything due to the prices.

I read that it was the rise of shein and Temu that really drove it out of business. you can get a necklace for £2 on shein that costs £10 in Claire’s and neither are great quality.

The OP asked:
How can a business that relies on young, part-time staff survive when their overheads have just been hiked through the roof? It’s not just the big brands; it’s the independent shops too. We’re going to be left with nothing but vape shops and empty units at this rate.

Yet all she has had are responses moralising about how awful Claire's was and the usual 'plastic tat' comments.

How anyone can think they are morally superior by rejoicing at the loss of 1,300 jobs in a cost of living crisis is beyond me, but that's MN for you.

Claire's was dreadful and doubtless there were lots of reasons it went under but the NI hike was absolutely the final nail, as it has been and will be for many other businesses. Kier will throw Rachel under the bus after the local elections but they both deserve to go IMO.

The reason why the business failed is because they didn’t evolve with trends. Teenagers no longer are interested in their overpriced tat, they either buy cheap stuff from the Chinese firms online or buy better quality, plus Superdrug and the supermarkets sell similar cheap jewellery. Youngsters around here at least aren’t short of money based on the amount of take away drinks they consume but Claire’s had become a shop for primary aged girls in recent years

The ni changes aren’t the reason, if the business was profitable they wouldn’t have a problem

Massive hike - it was 1%!

Claires is terrible.
But the NI hike combined with so many other cost increases is going to close so many businesses and devastate small towns in particular. I am in the North and we lost 7 small businesses between Xmas and April, there are 2 more shutting before summer and that is 1/4 of the town gone in 6 months.

It’s been shit for years. Their own fault entirely for selling overpriced tat. Dreadful store.

My kids loved it. I’m also sad it’s gone. And when stuff was on 3 for 2 it was ok.
I agree that otherwise it was silly prices. Which is weird as when I was a teen you could easily buy stuff with your pocket money. They priced things way too high for single products.

But as someone who got made redundant from the rise in NI I can see how it happens.

Claire's failed because everyone thinks it's a cheap shop and then they see the high prices!

Tell me you've never run a business?

How do you feel about vape shops? They employ people don’t they? And all those people abroad making the vapes? Let’s keep them all open just to maintain jobs 🙄