Five hundred people applied for 23 jobs being created as a new convenience store opens in a converted Black Country pub.

Midlands Co-op Society bosses today said they were “overwhelmed” by the response when they began recruiting staff for their latest branch in  Overfield Road, Dudley.

The 23 recruits  beat off stiff competition from hundreds of unemployed people searching for work in the aftermath of the recession.

Spokeswoman Alison Cooper said the Co-op received most applications from former shop staff who had lost their jobs.

She said: “It has really been an overwhelming response for a store of this size. The number of applications is unprecedented and this is undoubtedly in response to the current economic climate.”