A clothing retailer that has shops in Letchworth GC and Stevenage went into administration today. Ethel Austin, with shops in Eastcheap, Letchworth GC, and Queensway, Stevenage, has gone into administration for the second time in two years. Administrators

A clothing retailer that has shops in Letchworth GC and Stevenage went into administration today.

Ethel Austin, with shops in Eastcheap, Letchworth GC, and Queensway, Stevenage, has gone into administration for the second time in two years.

Administrators MCR said the 300 shops will continue to trade as normal while a new buyer is sought, but could not rule out closures or redundancies as there were no guarantees a buyer would be found.

MCR blamed the move on failure to secure necessary funding, compounded by poor trading in January.

Ethel Austin first went into administration in 2008 but was bought within a month by the former head of retailing at MK One.