High and Mighty, the gentleman's outfitter for the bigger fella, is close to being rescued from insolvency.

The retailer, which specialises in outsized clothes for the tall and portly, is set to go through a pre-pack administration — a means by which companies escape the clutches of their creditors by going through an insolvency process only to be bought immediately in a pre-arranged deal.

Family-owned High and Mighty has stores in Knightsbridge, Oxford Street and Edgware Road, and a further 20 around the country, as well as outlets in the Low Countries and Middle East.

It is believed the chain has become a victim of the online clothes shopping boom. N Brown, which plays the equivalent role of offering fashion to the larger lady, has made a success of the internet and has been muscling in on the male market.

Trade magazine Retail Week says High and Mighty have lined up accountants PricewaterhouseCoopers to put it into administration.

It believes potential buyers include City-based private equity turnround specialist SKG Capital or Rochester, the American outsize clothes specialist which has a store on the Brompton Road opposite Harrods.