THE Scottish clothing group Edinburgh Woollen Mill emerged today as a frontrunner to acquire parts of ailing retailer Blacks Leisure.

Potential bidders had until today to register interest with the sale adviser, KPMG, and reports suggest bids have been tabled from companies including Mountain Warehouse and Go Outdoors.

There have been concerns over the future of the firm, which owns 98 Blacks outlets and 208 Millets stores, after its biggest shareholder Sports Direct walked away from buy-out talks.

But sources familiar with the process confirmed bidders had come forward, including Edinburgh Woollen Mill, which recently snapped up 58 Jane Norman stores after the retailer fell into administration. Blacks Leisure declined to comment.

Shares in Blacks Leisure surged 22% as speculation over potential bidders escalated but the price is still down 96% since the start of the year, giving the company a market value of £1.4m.

KPMG is expected to sell the company under a pre-pack administration so the winning bidder can pick it up free of liabilities.

Blacks, which also owns Peter Storm and Eurohike and is in £36m of debt, put itself up for sale after failing to secure extra funding to turn around the business, which would have included a revamp of its stores.

The retailer made a £16m loss in the first half of the year and warned its full-year performance would be worse than expected.

It was hit by the warm weather in October and November as much of its clothing, such as fleeces and waterproof jackets, is aimed at harsher conditions.

Sports Direct, which is owned by Newcastle United owner Mike Ashley, had been seen as the most likely to rescue the ailing retailer, having tried to buy the company last year.

But Sports Direct issued a statement confirming it had withdrawn an offer for the company. However, whether the company will make a move on Blacks if it falls into administration remains to be seen.

Before buying Jane Norman stores, Edinburgh Woollen Mill bought 77 stores from the administrators for Rosebys in 2008. They were merged with Ponden Mill to create the 150-strong Ponden Home chain.