Happit, the Sottish value retailer, has been acquired by a Leeds-based stores business after a lightning administration.

The Dunfermline-headquartered chain has been sold to Ellie Louise for an undisclosed sum in a deal that will safeguard the future of the brand and the jobs of 250 employees in Scotland.

Details of the transaction were not disclosed.

However, the sale follows a period during which Happit came under pressure from the relentless rise of competition from discount operations amid slowing growth in consumer spending.

In addition to 32 stores in Scotland, stretching from Inverness to Musselburgh, Happit has seven stores in England. These include outlets in the south east where spending has come under pressure from the downturn in the housing market.

Billy Hughes, a solicitor who advised Ellie Louise, confirmed the family-owned firm bought Happit out of administration. He declined to comment further.

A source said Happit had been in administration for a matter of minutes. The firm may have been subject to a so-called "pre-pack" administration.

These involve putting a firm into administration prior to selling it to a buyer who does not assume all its liabilities.

Champions of such arrangements say these allow purchasers to move quickly and maximise returns for creditors.

It is likely that the sale generated very limited returns for Happit's owners, the Harris family, who have had interests in textiles in various guises since 1916.

Latest accounts filed by the Harris' Castleblair group, which owned Happit , show it posted a hefty trading loss in the year to October 2006.

This came three years after the company quit manufacturing in the UK, shutting plants in Dunfermline and Glenrothes with the loss of 400 jobs.

Castleblair blamed low shop prices and cost pressures from Marks & Spencer, its key customer, for its decision.

The group shut its warehousing business in May 2007 and received conditional planning permission for the development of its property at Victoria Works, Dunfermline.

In the year to October 2006 Happit Limited's pre-tax profits slipped to £85,238 from £95,226. Turnover fell 2% to £16.5m.

In their report, directors said market conditions were difficult and highlighted the firm's vulnerability to changes in consumer spending and competition from other retail chains.

Following the deal Ellie Louise will have more than 90 stores.

Started by Mick Broughton on a market stall in Leeds, the firm has more than 50 stores across the Midlands and the north of England and annual turnover of £20m-plus.

After acquiring the Gimbles business in 2003, the directors expect to be able to integrate Happit into the existing company structure.

Kevin Broughton, managing director, said: "We are delighted with the acquisition and we plan on further growth in the near future.

"We are certain that we can build on the Happits name and brand, particularly by improving the existing stores and introducing new fashion lines into our retail shops."