Fashion chain seeks lifeline as gloom grips high street

The owners of fast fashion chain Quiz are racing to secure a rescue financing package following “disappointing” Christmas sales.It forms part of radical plans being studied to put the retailer on a firmer footing as it battles an onslaught of cost increases and struggles to compete with the might of Chinese e-commerce giants Shein and Temu.Quiz has more than 40 stores and employs an estimated 1,000 staff. The company’s founders are understood to be considering drafting in advisers to draw up a range of options, including new financing and possible store closures, in an effort to secure its future.A source close to the company said it had been approached by several turnaround funds seeking to provide it with fresh capital.It comes almost a year after the Glasgow-based Ramzan family pulled the plug on the business, closing 23 shops before buying back the remaining assets as part of a pre-pack deal. Quiz was started by entrepreneur Tarak Ramzan, the son of Pakistani immigrants, as a single shop in 1993.It is the latest in a slew of retailers to run into trouble, after Original Factory Store and Claire’s Accessories tumbled into administration, resulting in the loss of 2,500 jobs.Russell & Bromley is also on the verge of largely disappearing from the high street as part of a deal with Next that will result in 32 of its 35 shops closing for good, while the future of LK Bennett is hanging in the balance.Mounting cost pressuresRetailers are reeling from sharp increases in national insurance and the minimum wage, while also grappling with rising energy costs and a business rates overhaul.A Quiz spokesman said: “The shareholders are assessing options available to the business from both internal and external sources.”“The business has experienced volatile trading in the last twelve months. While sales were stronger than anticipated in the summer, they were disappointing during the critical Christmas period.“Changing consumer habits, government budget disruption around peak Black Friday trade, cost pressures from business rates and increases in national minimum wage and national insurance have proved challenging as widely reported across the retail sector.”Quiz joined the London Stock Exchange in 2017, resulting in a £92m payday shared among nine members of the Ramzan family. At the time, the company was touted as the next fast-fashion sensation, competing with the likes of Boohoo.Investment giants Schroders and BlackRock were among those that snapped up shares in Quiz as part of a £200m listing.The appointment of retail heavyweight and JD Sports chairman Peter Cowgill helped bolster its credentials, as did its financial track record. Mr Cowgill is understood to have stepped down when the Ramzan family bought it back, though he has retained a small shareholding.The business had posted a 30pc jump in turnover to £90m and a 44pc operating increase in profit to £10.3m in the final year prior to the share sale.However, within a little more than a year, Quiz had issued the first in a series of profit warnings that went on to decimate its share price. The retailer has since delisted from the stock exchange, ending its eight-year run as a public company.Following the shake-up and sale back to the Ramzans, Quiz reported a 14pc increase in store sales during July and August 2025 compared to the previous year. In December, it opened stores in Aberdeen, Scotland, and Telford, Shropshire, as part of plans to open 10 new shops across the UK.