Fashion chain Peacocks, which has a store on Dockhead Street in Saltcoats, has fallen into administration with shopworkers' jobs at risk.
The business, along with Jaeger, is owned by Edinburgh Woollen Mill (EWM) which failed to find a buyer for the pair.
The companies have 500 shops between them employing over 4,700 people.
No redundancies have been announced and no stores have closed yet.
Part of billionaire Philip Day's EWM retail empire, it was confirmed today, Thursday November 19, that administrators FRP Advisory has been appointed.
Tony Wright, joint administrator and partner at FRP, said: “Jaeger and Peacocks are attractive brands that have suffered the well-known challenges that many retailers face at present.
“We are in advanced discussions with a number of parties and working hard to secure a future for both businesses.”
An EWM Group spokeswoman told the Press Association: “In recent weeks we have had constructive discussions with a number of potential buyers for Peacocks and Jaeger Ltd but the continuing deterioration of the retail sector due to the impact of the pandemic and second lockdown have made this process longer and more complex than we would have hoped."
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