Ciro Citterio in administration

Ciro Citterio: out of fashion?

The owners of Ciro Citterio, the High Street fashion retailer for men, have called in the administrators.

The clothes chain, best known for its suits, has 100 outlets in the UK and employs 1,000 staff.

The firm racked up losses of £9.7m last year on a a turnover of £65m.

The administrators say there are already five parties interested in taking over the struggling chain.

Rescue hopes

The administrators say they hope the restructuring can be carried out without closing stores, especially given the interest from potential buyers.

"Ciro Citterio is a well-known High Street retailing brand and it is not surprising that it has already attracted a significant interest from third parties wishing to buy the business as a going concern," said Andrew Pepper, one of the joint administrators.

The firm's original owners put the stores into administration in March 2001, but the buyers - Trident Fashions - have now succumbed to the same fate.

Trident Fashions is the first significant business to be placed into administration since the Enterprise Act came into being on 15 September.

The government hopes the new rules will help foster a "rescue culture" among banks and lenders, with fewer companies going to the wall.