THE Giant Party Shop in Chippenham is hiring out its last costumes, and selling its final balloons as doors close for good on January 5.

But it is not the end of the road on the site at Gladstone Parade on Timber Street, as partners Karl Potts and Joanna McKinlay, from Wroughton, plan to convert the store into a new hair salon. In memory of the cinema turned nightclub that stood on the site, the salon will be called Goldiggers.

"We ran the Giant Party Shop for 17 years in Chippenham - eleven years in The Bridge and six years in our current location," Karl said.

Online sales have dented the store's success, and after undertaking research, they decided a hair salon, with 20 stations, would be a fruitful next step - to open in February.

"We decided to call it Goldiggers because of all the history of this site - all the bands that played here," Karl explained.

"It has been really fun running the party shop. People came in because they were planning a party, so it all had a happy feeling."