A RETAIL company behind a fancy dress shop has pledged its support for a charity that helps armed forces veterans and their families deal with post traumatic stress disorder.

The partnership between LJ Retail Group and Veterans at Ease was launched at Fancy Dress Party in Millennium Place, Durham City.

The event was attended by people in Transformer costumes – to bring attention to how the charity is transforming lives.

LP Retail director Lyndsey Johnson said: “We were discussing who our business was going to support as our charity of the year when John Taylor of Veterans at Ease attended an event staged by Durham Bid.

“He gave a talk about the charity which was so moving and informative.

“There are so many soldiers coming back from Afghanistan and war zones who suffer from post traumatic stress disorder and we felt we would really like our company to get involved.”

Mrs Johnson added: “One way we as a retail group can help is to raise cash for the charity and raise their profile.

“We are more than Fancy Dress Party and specialize in multi-channel retailing. We are going to give them our expertise to teach them to sell their merchandise and reach and wider market.”

For more information about the Durham-based Veterans at Ease visit http://www.veteransatease.org.