A bride-to-be from South Wales is now facing walking down the aisle without the dress of her dreams after the shop she bought her wedding gown from went bust. Not only is Tracy Thomas from Newport having to cope with the stress of losing out on her ultimate wedding dress, the 42-year-old is also over £800 out of pocket after paying in full for her dress upon placing her order.

Tracy spent 6 months trawling bridal shops trying on numerous wedding gowns in a bid to find the perfect dress. And then she found it, in Always and Forever bridal boutique in Newport. Thrilled to have found exactly the right dress for her big day, Tracy ordered the gown and paid the full amount, £854 in cash.

However disaster struck when two weeks ago, Tracy discovered the bridal shop had gone bust and was no longer trading. Worse still, the order for the dress she was planning to wear for her wedding to fiancé Andrew Stephens in May next year, hadn’t even been placed by the shop or paid for.

Unfortunately there seems to be no way of Tracy getting her money back as she paid in cash. Had she have paid using a credit card, this may have offered a form of insurance. Bride-to-be Tracy says she is “devastated” and fears she won’t be able to afford to pay out a second time for another wedding dress.

Tracy is now in contact with the wholesalers who sell her wedding dress and is discussing the possibly of buying the dress at cost price direct. But even at a heavily discounted rate, Tracy’s dream dress will still set her back at least £500, which she’s unsure she’ll be able to afford.