Gordon admitted that some of the stores could be saved if landlords lowered their leases, some of which Mothercare has held for more than two decades. Otherwise, the closure plan would lead to about 250 redundancies, with other jobs moving to new out-of-town developments. The mother-and-child retailer, which also runs the Early Learning Centre brand, plans to continue its aggressive overseas expansion by opening another 150 stores outside Britain. These will include its first outlets in Latin America. "Ninety nine percent of the world's babies are born outside the UK, so it's a massive market," said Gordon. "China and India offer huge opportunities, with a big appetite for our products from middle-class parents." The scale of Mothercare's closures is the latest sign that Britain's retail sector is struggling badly, even though the recession officially ended more than 18 months ago.