A fashion giant of almost 40 years is to shut all of its stores in the UK today (Tuesday) - including its remaining sites in Kent.

Ted Baker’s remaining 31 shops will close their shutters for good in a move which will put more than 500 jobs at risk.

It comes after talks between the brand's owner, Authentic Brands, and retail tycoon Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group stalled, leading to the closure of all stores by the end of today.

The business behind the fashion brand’s UK shops, No Ordinary Designer Label Limited (NODL), fell into administration in March.

A few weeks later it was confirmed 15 Ted Baker stores would shut, resulting in about 245 job losses.

Staff working at the remaining stores were told last month they would lose their jobs when the shops closed.

Ted Baker had 46 UK stores and employed around 975 people prior to the insolvency.

In Kent, the brand currently has stores in Ashford and at Bluewater Shopping Centre.

Both are included in Ted Baker’s list of 31 shops earmarked for closure by today.

Ashford’s store’s official last day of trading was last Monday (August 12).

The company also has a shop in Bromley and a concession stand in Fenwick in Canterbury - both of which have already shut.

Authentic Brands, the US-based firm behind Juicy Couture and Reebok, is still the owner of Ted Baker’s intellectual property.

It was hoping to find a new partner to run the Ted Baker retail and online business in the UK and Europe.

The collapse of the UK stores could mark the end of its position on high streets, after being founded in 1988 by Ray Kelvin and becoming recognised for its patterned and floral clothing.

However, the brand is currently still sold through some department stores and retailers.

Ted Baker also has licensing agreements in place for stores in cities in Asia and the Middle East, which remain unaffected.