Oddbins goes into administration

A number of potential buyers for the business have come forward

Wine retailer Oddbins has gone into administration, but all of its 89 stores will remain open for now.

Administrators Deloitte said they were hopeful of selling Oddbins as a going concern and had been contacted by "a number" of interested parties.

Oddbins tried to avoid administration by getting creditors to accept lower repayments, but one of the biggest, HM Revenue and Customs, refused.

Oddbins recently shut 39 stores amid stiff competition from supermarkets.

The company, which employs 400 staff, is not the first specialist wine retailer to be squeezed out by supermarkets.

Threshers-owner First Quench collapsed in 2009, while the Unwins chain folded in 2005.

Lee Manning, one of the newly-appointer administrators, added: "We will continue to trade the company whilst seeking a sale as a going concern. Employees will continue to be paid and will be fully briefed."

Last week, Oddbins said that a majority of creditors had voted in favour of the rescue plan, known as a Company Voluntary Agreement (CVA), and wanted to see the company continue trading.

It had proposed paying creditors 21% of the money they were owed.

But the opposition of HMRC - which is owed £8m by the chain - meant the CVA could not proceed.