Online shopping has caused tough trading conditions for shops

to Hannah, poor customer service is also to blame.

“I was in Asda last week and this woman was so rude. She didn’t want to help me, I asked where something was and she shrugged it off and said ‘well if it’s not here, look online”. I actually turned around and said that I knew they had it here and wanted to physically see it and buy it.

“That’s what people don’t understand. If you don’t put a smile on your face and don’t go the extra mile, why bother going into a shop? These people are building their own monsters.”

In Hannah’s view buying from a shop means knowing exactly what you’re getting and in the case of wedding dresses, there’s the extra benefit of making alterations.

Most importantly, choosing a shop over a website also means supporting the local economy and local employment.

“If people keep saying ‘oh I can find this cheaper online’ there would be no-one left. If you don’t leave your house and you buy stuff from websites like Amazon or eBay you’re supporting million-dollar companies. They don’t need all that. But if you buy from places like us you’re keeping people in jobs.

“We’re a family-run business, mum and I have been working here for 10 years and I hope that we’ll still be here in 10 years’ time. But I do worry. We’ve also started thinking if we should put our dresses online, but I’m backing away from it because I don’t want to do that. I want people to come through the door.”