THE sister of a bride conned by bridal shop Anna Sara says she was “lucky” in light of the owners’ court confession.

Nichola Hustings was left without a dress for herself and nine bridesmaids having put down a deposit with the Newport shop in October 2015.

With just four weeks before her big day at the Celtic Manor in August 2016, the Cwmbran bride-to-be had only received one “half-finished” dress from the firm owned by Melanie and Patricia Bishop.

Last week the Blackwood mother and daughter pleaded guilty jointly to 14 counts of engaging in unfair commercial practice between March 2015 and April 2016.

They had tricked brides that their dresses were being made exclusively for them, when in fact they were imported from China.

Mrs Hustings’ wedding went ahead as planned thanks to a strong network of friends and family, according to her sister Katy Collett.

“She was very, very lucky that she had so many people to help her sort things out and get new dresses in time,” she said.

“But the whole experience was just awful for everyone involved.”

Ms Collett said that Bishop’s guilty pleas were welcomed but she remains perplexed by their actions.

“I just don’t understand why anybody would choose to be in that business and then lie in the way that they did,” she added.

“They could’ve easily said that they had purchased these dresses in China. I’ve never understood why they had to lie and say they were handmade.

“Some of these dresses were beautiful. They could have had a respectable business.”

Melanie and Patricia Bishop will both be sentenced on March 9.