Earlier this month, Beales department store in Bournemouth held its semi-annual fashion show, Girls Night Out, featuring performances from former X-Factor contestants and local lads, The Reason 4.

On 6th October, about 500 fashion conscious individuals attended the event which included a catwalk of new and upcoming autumn and winter styles from such brands as Barbour, Esprit, Duck and Cover, and Calvin Klein. The evening was held to support Dorset children’s hospice, Julia’s House, for which over £9,000 was raised.

Lin Hudswell from Julia’s House said: “I was absolutely blown away by the show and the support from Beales couldn’t have come at a more crucial time.”

Upon arrival, guests were offered complimentary makeovers from the in-store beauty team while treated to the mellow tones of professional singer Katie Francesca. Everyone seated at 7:30pm for the main event, complete with a real runway.

Southampton-bred boy band The Reason 4, who made it to the judges’ houses in last year’s X-Factor, were the surprise musical appetizer and finale for the catwalk, performing a cover of Maroon 5’s “Moves Like Jagger” and their new single “Empty Bottles”.

Afterwards, the band signed autographs and posed for photos with their fans. 26-year-old Glenn from the band said: “I thought the show was a great success. The models looked really great and there’s something here at Beales for everyone. I feel good to be a part of it.”

Also at the event was designer, George Davies, who came to promote his new clothing collections at Beales – ‘GEM’ for women and ‘Broadbents & Boothroyds’ for men – which were featured in the fashion show. George, who also founded ‘George at Asda’, gave a substantial donation towards the show’s cause.

He told BHbeat: “The people here are amazing and the fashion is great but more importantly, what it does for charity is even better. I’d travel anywhere for that.”