A travel agent had a knife held to her throat when four armed robbers raided a Thomson travel agency in Sale, Cheshire on Friday.
The thugs, armed with metal bars and machetes, entered the shop and tried to steal money from the foreign exchange bureau but could not break through the time-delay locking system. The robbers left empty-handed and fled in a car driven by a fifth man.
One agent was dragged into an office and had a knife held to her throat by one of the thugs. She escaped unhurt but was later taken to hospital suffering from shock.
Two members of staff and two sets of customers were in the shop at the time.
A Thomson spokeswoman said the operator was helping police with the investigation. She said: “Although our retail staff follow a strict training programme which includes advising them how to act should an isolated incident of this type occur, you can not prepare for how this might affect the individual.
“Accordingly, we are offering every support and assistance at this time in association with a recognised counselling body.”