Ted Baker is set to close all of its remaining 31 stores by tomorrow, with more than 500 jobs at risk.

The fashion retailer’s owner, No Ordinary Designer Label (NODL), fell into administration in March, leading to administrators closing 15 stores and cutting 245 jobs in April.

The US firm, Authentic Brands Group, currently owns the intellectual property of the British fashion brand, while NODL is the holding company for the brand.

Head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown, Susannah Streeter, said: "The closure of the remaining Ted Baker stores in the UK is the culmination of a slow motion disaster, with roots stretching back to pre-pandemic times. Although lockdowns were like a bad dream for many retailers, they were a nightmare for Ted Baker, which relied heavily on formal and occasionwear and did not have an effective online operation to rely on.

"While bigger operations like Next and M&S were able to switch focus to established digital channels and laid-back ranges, Ted Baker floundered, as management failed to switch gears and rev up a turnaround to halt an exodus of customers."

Before the firm entered administration, it employed 975 people in the UK and ran 45 shops, as well as an e-commerce platform and department store concessions.

The BBC said that on Sunday, Ted Baker’s website read "Goodbye for now", with customers able to make returns for 14 days, adding that it was "not taking orders right now".

Streeter added: "While Ted Baker appears to be stepping into fashion obscurity in the UK, with the store closures another blow for the high street, the brand will still have life through franchise agreements and licences, particularly overseas. But the dream for standalone boutique stores up and down the country, where aspirational shoppers would be suited and booted has come to a sorry conclusion, in a very tough fashion retail environment."

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