Emotions ran high on Saturday as nine members of staff at HJ Knee had their heads shaved in the store at Spitfire Retail Park in Trowbridge in a bid to raise thousands of pounds for charity.

The event saw six men and three women, including store manager Louise Smith, who survived breast cancer, have the hair on their head completely shaved off in aid of Cancer Research UK.

More than 120 people turned up at the store to show their support on the day, which included a cake and coffee stall provided by Jo’s Kitchen. There were also raffle tickets on sale for a draw that will take place on December 1.

Mrs Smith, who was diagnosed in 2003, said: “It was a crazy day.

“It was like a roller coaster, but the main thing was that we raised lots of money for an important cause.

“It was quite emotional for me and for my family, as well as everyone else who supported me.

“It was great to have the staff’s support as I was working at Knees when I went through it.”

Many of the staff who had their heads shaved also dyed their hair pink beforehand, while many dressed up in pink on the day.

The store has managed to raise £1,650 so far for the cause, with the total expected to rise over the next few weeks.

Retail director Ian Vidler said: “It was a fantastic day and there are now quite a few of us with no hair.

“We had around 120 people visit us to watch the head shaving and we raised £1,458 on the day.

“We’ve had more come in since then and with the raffle tickets we will be selling between now and the draw on December 1 we are confident we will reach our £3,000 target.

“There were lots of laughs on the day and some tears too, especially for Louise and her family as it was quite emotional, but the support we had from the community was great.

“I got my hair sprayed pink with some of the others before the head shave and I think all the staff enjoyed it.

“It’s nice to be able to give something back to the community as this is a nasty disease that affects so many people.”

Raffle tickets can be purchased at HJ Knee until November 30.