Several brides-to-be had a lucky escape when thieves targeted a wedding shop, stealing dresses and other items worth £20,000.

Burglars smashed their way into the premises and made off with about half the stock in a raid that could have caused heartache for couples planning to get married.

But dresses still for sale were the only ones stolen in the break-in.

Gowns already selected by women preparing for their big day were in another room and went unnoticed by the thieves.

The burglary occurred at Something Old, Something New, which sells ex-sample dresses.

The shop at The Square, Fawley, is run by Jan Hall and Jacky Garbutt.

Jan said: “The thieves got into an office behind the shop, kicked our door in and stole about 20 dresses, plus 12 veils, ten jackets and several tiaras. We’re doing a stock-take to discover exactly what was taken but we think they got away with property worth about £20,000.

“They only took what they could carry, leaving us with just over half.

“The theft was discovered by one of the people in the flat above the shop. They went down to get a pushchair from their car and noticed that our door had been smashed in.

“I was pretty devastated when I discovered what had happened.

“Luckily the dresses on which customers had already paid a deposit were in another room – the thieves probably didn’t even know they were there.

“It was a great relief to discover that they hadn’t been taken. There would have been some very disappointed brides.”

The break-in occurred on the night of July 7-8. Police are investigating.