WORKERS at a city centre store are once again fearing their jobs could be axed as clothing retailer Ethel Austin goes into administration for the second time.
Staff at the Frodsham Street store have been left with an uncertain future as they wait to see if their jobs can be saved.
The Merseyside-based firm also had to call in administrators back in 2008 but it was saved at the last minute by founder of fashion retailer MK One, Elaine McPherson.
At the time she promised to turn around the fortunes of the store, but on Monday it was revealed this effort had failed and the MCR adminstrators had taken control.
An Ethel Austin spokesman said they are currently looking for a buyer for the chain of stores, but were unable to rule out store closures and redundancies.
He added: “We can’t give exact figures for staff members at each store because they tend to work in a number of stores in the region, but there will be around 15 members of staff working at the Chester store.”
MCR partner Geoff Bouchier said: "The Joint Administrators are trading the Companies in Administration in the short term with a view to finding a purchaser for the businesses as a going concern. In the current economic climate there are no guarantees that purchasers will be found. We are reviewing the financial position of the companies and are at this stage, unable to rule out store closures and redundancies."
The Ethel Austin store in Frodsham town centre closed in November after more than 30 years in business. Staff were told “it was no longer viable”. All staff were given new jobs at other Ethel Austin stores but now they could again be facing job cuts.
