Paperchase is on the brink of insolvency as it continues to seek a buyout deal.

The embattled retailer was put up for sale earlier this month - just months after being taken over by Steve Curtis, a retail investor who has been involved with Tie Rack and Jigsaw.

According to Sky News, accountancy firm PwC is handling the auctioning process for Paperchase, while the High Street stationary retailer has lined up Begbies Traynor, the professional services firm, in case a rescue deal does not materialise.

City sources have stated that Begbies’ potential role represents “sensible contingency planning”.

Following the takeover in 2021, Curtis was said to be backing an existing management plan to grow the number of Paperchase outlets to approximately 150 in the coming years.

Paperchase currently trades from 100 sites in the UK and has around 1,300 employees.

The stationer previously filed a notice to appoint administrators in early 2021.

At the time, a spokesperson for Paperchase said: “The cumulative effects of lockdown one, lockdown two – at the start of the Christmas shopping period – and now the current restrictions have put unbearable strain on retail businesses across the country.”

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