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A UK kitchen manufacturer has entered administration, resulting in 124 confirmed redundancies and a further 336 at risk. It comes as industry-wide blows have led to the closure of thousands of stores nationwide.

Moores was partially sold through a pre-pack deal to Wren Trade Kitchen, and had joint administrators, James Clark and Will Wirght of Interpath, appointed on January 19. Bosses say the decision to sell the company was driven by rising costs and challenging market conditions.

Moores was founded in 1947 and is one of the UK's longest-standing kitchen manufacturers. The West Yorkshire-based company works with housing developers, social housing providers, independent retailers, builders' merchants, and large DIY stores to deliver kitchens to homeowners and housebuilders.

A shift in the industry, driven by pressures across the construction supply chain, contributed to the company's collapse, leading to difficult months of trading. Rising input costs and a fall in housebuilding activity also played a significant role in the final decision.

Moore's customer list and intellectual property assets were sold to Wrens Kitchen Group, with administrators confirming the loss of 124 jobs.

Affected staff will receive support in making claims through the Redundancy Payments Service.

In a statement, Wren said it was sad to see Moores go under but hopes the deal could create opportunities for affected staff elsewhere in the UK.

"Whilst the company was a competitor of ours, we believe it is in everyone's interests to have a strong kitchen industry based here in the UK," the company said.

Interpath also stated that the transaction would help preserve Moores' manufacturing heritage within the Wren group, with Wren confirming that it would provide affected customers with the option to transfer outstanding contracts seamlessly.

It also said it would engage Moores' management to explore potential employment opportunities for impacted members of staff.