Fifteen jobs have been created by Wynsors World of Shoes which opens on Tyldesley Road in South Shore.

Bosses for the budget shoe giant chose to open its 40th store close to the Manchester pub due to the large population.

All the jobs have been created from the local area and there is hope that more jobs can be found if the store proves to be a success.

David Buchanan, group marketing manager for Wynsors, said: "We are hoping that the attraction of a large shoe retailer will bring more people to the area and help out the local economy.

"We do a lot of research into where we are planning to set up our stores and this area fitted our demographic perfectly.

"We have taken on 15 full and part time staff for the store and we are confident the shoppers will make it a success."

Wynsors also has a shop at Freeport Shopping Village in Fleetwood and Bamber Bridge, near Preston.

The chain opened its first store in 1956 and has grown to become one of the leading retailers in low-cost footwear.

Its headquarters are situated in Bacup, east Lancashire, and it has shops in Barnsley, Blackburn, Bol-ton, Chesterfield, Hull, Leeds, Sunderland, Manchester, Newcastle, Sheff-ield, St Helens, Warrington and Wigan.

Wynsors will also have a presence along the Promenade in the shape of a sponsored tram for 12 months. The tram is being launched in two weeks.

The Tyldesley Road and Manchester Square area of Blackpool had suffered over the past few years with hotels and businesses closing down.

Mr Buchanan added: "The Blackpool store is the latest phase of our continued growth in the North West.

"Although we cannot guarantee that we will open another store on the Fylde, we will look to expand our operation further to help the local economy and bring more people into the area."

n Angry South Shore hoteliers – see Page 7

n For more business stories – see Page 36