Staff at the Wincheap branch of Land of Leather are among more than 650 employees to be warned their jobs are at risk.

The furniture retailer went into administration last month.

As unemployment soared by more than 3,000 across the county, administrators at Deloitte briefed workers that they had so far failed to fund a buyer for the remaining 82 stores, together employing 656 staff.

Lee Manning, a Deloitte partner and joint administrator, said: “While it has not yet been possible to sell Land of Leather, we continue to talk to interested parties, and our goal remains to find a buyer for the business as a going concern.

“However, it is prudent to make contingency plans and we have notified all employees of the risk of redundancy and store closures should a buyer for the business not be found,”

He reassured customers that goods were still being received from suppliers, and his aim was to fulfil as many existing orders as possible.