Tears at closing of lost fashion trendsetter with 'iconic' yellow bags

News a legendary Manchester clothing store, loved by generations, was to close is said to have reduced one customer to tears.

The first Stolen From Ivor shop opened on the trendy King Street West in the city centre in 1965. It was close to a boutique owned by footballing hero George Best, with who he had a gentleman's agreement that he would not sell suits if the United ace didn't sell jeans.

For generations it was a staple of the city’s fashion scene, with fashion conscious Mancunians happy to be spotted carrying their iconic yellow plastic bags. One of the stores in Manchester's Market Centre was also the first place to stock Levi's Jeans in the north of England in 1966.

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Since then, the chain became legendary for its trendy clobber with famous fans including Take That. As the brand grew it had had 43 shops across the north west during its peak, including Stockport, Altrincham, Bolton and Bury - becoming a mecca for fashion hipsters across Greater Manchester and beyond.

However all but seven stores were forced to close in 2002 after the company went into administration. In 2014, it looked like the curtain was to come down on the last remaining store in Stockport, which opened in April 1974.

Back then, the M.E.N. spoke to boss and company founder Ivor Hazan who said retail giants such as Primark, which had opened a store in Stockport three years earlier, were 'killing' independent stores like his.

The Didsbury entrepreneur said he was bitterly disappointed at having to close his last store, five decades after he opened his first.

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"I’m gutted. It