MORE than 500 people have applied for work at a new pet store that is about to open in Bromsgrove.

Pets at Home will open its new premises at Brook Retail Park, Sherwood Road on Thursday, March 27 and was able to offer 12 of the people that applied for jobs positions with the company.

The firm invested more than £375,000 in the new 7,341sq ft store, and applicants had to go through a number of stages to see if they were suitable for the role.

Adam Wilcock, area manger, said: “Pets at Home is committed to recruiting from the local area and I’m pleased we’ve found a team of talented individuals in Bromsgrove. They’re all extremely passionate about pets and can’t wait to get started.”

New store manager Andy Thurstance has been with Pets at Home for nearly a year having previously worked at the Ashby de la Zouch store branch.

“It’s been a busy few months and now my team and I can’t wait to open the doors and welcome our new customers and their pets to the store,” he said.

Pets at Home in Bromsgrove will provide thousands of dedicated pet products, catering for local dogs, cats, small animals, chickens, reptiles, birds and fish as well as wildlife.

Last year the company came first in the Sunday Times Top 25 Best Big Companies to Work For list.