Mamas & Papas has closed six stores and will be reviewing operations at its head office which could lead to as many as 127 redundancies across shopfloor and back office.

The retailer said that certain assets of Mamas & Papas’ retail arm were sold to other companies within the wider group this morning through a pre-pack administration conducted by Deloitte.

It confirmed six unprofitable stores have now closed, with the loss of 73 jobs. The six affected shops are Aberdeen, Preston, Milton Keynes, Lincoln, Leamington and Fareham.

The retailer also said it would be “reviewing and simplifying operations” at its Huddersfield head office, which could lead to an additional 54 redundancies.

Mamas & Papas said its 26 remaining stores would continue to trade as normal, as would its digital, wholesale and concession businesses, safeguarding some 600 jobs.

Executive chair Riccardo Cincotta said: “These actions are always difficult, but they are also necessary in a challenging market to ensure Mamas & Papas achieves its considerable future potential. We remain fully focused on maintaining our position as the UK’s most popular nursery brand.

“We will continue to review our store portfolio in the light of customers’ changing behaviour and we remain fully committed to an omnichannel offering that reflects their evolving needs.

“Our digital performance is tracking ahead of expectation, our wholesale distribution in the UK and internationally continues to grow and our in-store personal shopping experience remains highly valued by our customers.”