by Trevor Sturgess

Sixteen more Kent branches of an off-licence chain are to close with the loss of dozens of jobs.

The closures of the Threshers, Wine Rack, Local and Bottoms Up stores are part of a national programme that will see 391 stores close before Christmas, with the loss of 2,140 jobs.

All the stores will shut their doors for the last time on December 20 at the latest, depending on stock levels.

The branches affected in Kent are Threshers in Maidstone (Penenden Heath), Herne Bay (Canterbury Road), Canterbury (Wincheap), Tonbridge (Shipbourne Road), Tunbridge Wells (Frant Road), Bexleyheath (Mayplace Road); Wine Rack in Bearsted, Headcorn, Whitstable (High Street), Westerham, Staplehurst, Sevenoaks (London Road), Chislehurst; Local in Maidstone (Parkwood Parade) and Orpington (Eldred Drive); and Bottoms Up in Petts Wood.

The latest batch of closures follow earlier announcements by administrators at KPMG that 126 stores would close on November 5 and a further 381 on November 20. Nearly 250 stores have now closed.

The closures follow the financial collapse of First Quench Retailing, the owners of Threshers, Wine Rack, The Local, Haddows, Bottoms Up and Victoria Wine.

The chain has faced increasing competition from supermarkets, and despite widespread three-for-two offers, has failed to attract enough customers to the stores.

First Quench originally operated around 1,200 shops employing approximately 6,300 people. The latest high street demise comes a year after the collapse of the Woolworth retailing giant, a time just before Christmas when several other well-known retailing names plunged into administration.

Richard Fleming, UK Head of Restructuring and joint administrator at KPMG, said: "Unfortunately, despite the initial high level of interest, it remains difficult for buyers to complete deals in the current tough market.

"However, we are still in talks regarding the sale of over 100 stores and hope to be able to make a further announcement about this shortly.

"We also remain hopeful that some of the 391 stores announced today might still be sold as going concerns before the closure process is completed, but with stock now running low in the remaining stores it has been necessary to make plans to close them."