High Street jewellery and accessories chain Claire’s is set to reopen 50 of its closed stores in the UK as soon as June, the Guardian has reported.

The new stores will be operated by Julien Jarjoura, the entrepreneur behind jewellery brand Une Ligne and European franchiser of around 240 Claire’s stores, after he received the blessing of Claire’s US owner, Ames Watson. He is currently in the process of signing new leases with UK landlords.

“I feel so sad when I see such a nice business going down,” Jarjoura told the paper. “The brand was basically dead and we’re bringing it back to life.”

The plan has emerged just days after the brand’s remaining stores closed on Tuesday, ending three decades on the High Street. Clarie’s entered administration in January following years of rising financial pressure.

Jarjoura initially offered to buy Clarie’s in January. He now plans to open between four and 10 stores a week, beginning in June. He told the paper that he believes the brand has suffered from a lack of investment in stores, a poor product fit for the market and a reliance on discounting due to high initial prices.

Under Jarjoura, the brand will serve a wider range of clientele, continuing with its ear-piercing service while adding new jewellery running from £1.90 to over £100.

He acknowledged to the paper that it would “take a bit of time to bring back the customers”, especially those that have become used to heavy discounts. “There will definitely be some brand repositioning,” he said: “We are not a discount store but we like to sell at a fair price.

Jarjoura is funding the purchase himself, and does not expect to immediately make a profit, he said. He has hired some of Claire’s former UK executives and is expected to keep some of its 365 concession stands, but he is not taking on its old Birmingham headquarters or bought old stock from the current administrators.

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