THE new owner of a famous Bolton jeweller says its plans to repoen it are unaffected by the closure of two of its three stores in south Manchester.

Prestons of Bolton was bought by Macclesfield-based luxury jewellery chain Cottrills in August last year.

The store, in Deansgate, is currently undergoing a £700,000 refurbishment ahead of its reopening in November.

Cottrills recently announced the closure of its showrooms in Macclesfield and Bramhall, leaving just its most recently-opened store in Wilmslow.

But a spokesman for Cottrills said the move was purely strategic, and that plans for the Prestons opening in Bolton were going "full speed ahead."

Matrin Cooper of Cottrills said: "Since we opened the Wilmslow store in November last year, the site has been a runaway success. It has far exceeded all our expectations."

The centrepiece of the Wilmslow store is a 6,000 litre marine aquarium, surrounded by a champagne bar where customers can have a glass of champagne while they browse.

"Not only did our new store win a design award, but it was also listed as one of the top 100 stores in the world to visit in a worldwide poll carried by Retail Week, along with places like Bloomingdales in New York. Obviously, we would love an accolade like that for Prestons of Bolton .

"With Bramhall and Macclesfield, and then Wilsmlow, we had three stores very close to each other. The new showroom has taken trade away from our other sites, and it simply made sense to concentrate our efforts."

Mr Cooper said the company would retain its Macclesfield headquarters, and added that no jobs were lost as a result of the move.

He said: "Some staff will be coming to Bolton when it opens. We have also retained some former Prestons staff for the reopening.

When open, Prestons will be one of only two places in the UK to feature a Rolex Room, exclusively designed by experts at the world-famous watchmaker's Geneva base.

It will be similar to the country's first Rolex Room, which is housed in Harrods, and will sell a range of Rolex watches.