GIFT and toy chain Hawkin's Bazaar, which has a branch in Maylord shopping centre, Hereford, has collapsed into administration, putting 177 jobs at risk.

The chain is the latest retailer to enter insolvency under the pressure of dwindling high street footfall and high rates and rents.

Hawkin's Bazaar has suspended its website but said trading will continue from its 20 stores until further notice.

The company, whose base is in Norwich, has drafted in Moorfields Advisory as administrators to seek a rescue deal after it suffered a "challenging Christmas period".

It said that much of its stock will be sold with "clearance discounts and other special promotions".

The retailer also said that gift cards will continue to be accepted for a limited time but will no longer be sold to customers.

Tom Straw, joint administrator and partner at Moorfields Advisory, said: "Hawkin's Bazaar is a retail brand with a strong heritage both on the high street and online.

"Unfortunately, despite making changes to their offering to appeal to the shift in modern buying patterns, the retailer still struggled to compete with online retailers such as Amazon etc."

It is the second time the retailer has fallen into administration, having closed the majority of its store network after entering financial difficulty in 2011.

In 2016, the company was bought by private equity firm Merino, which put the business up for sale in August after slumping to a £978,344 loss on sales of £15.3 million in 2018.

2019 was a tough year for the toy sector, with UK sales declining by 6% as political uncertainty weighed on consumer confidence.