Edinburgh Woollen Mill has emerged as one of the four bidders in the running to buy collapsed value clothing retailer Peacocks, Retail Week understands.

It is not known whether the specialist clothing retailer is bidding for all or part of the 600-store strong retailer.

Retail-Week.com revealed last month that Edinburgh Woollen Mill aims to take advantage of the abundance of property coming to market after the spate of retail administrations in recent months.

The group plans to open 250 high street and mall stores this year across the group.

The retailer has opened 100 stores in the last two years and now operates from around 800 stores across its brands. In 2011 it bought women’s fashion retailer Jane Norman out of administration.

Edinburgh Woollen Mill and KPMG declined to comment.

Textile tycoon Alshair Fiyaz is also understood to be battling it out for Peacocks, after teaming up with Danish investment fund Solstra Capital. With a family fortune estimated at £3bn, Fiyaz owns Danish department store Magasin Du Nord which he leases to Debenhams.