Aldi plans to create more than 550 new jobs in Scotland over the coming 12 months as it opens eight additional shops.

The supermarket has identified sites in Annan, Polmont, Newton Mearns and Strathaven along with one in the Cornhill area of Aberdeen and at the Auldhouse retail park in Glasgow.

The other two stores are both in Edinburgh with one in Portobello and the other at Fruitmarket Place.

That will take its Scottish estate to 72 while its workforce here will be around 2,500 once all the new locations are open.

It also intends to add further Scottish products to its shelves.

Richard Holloway, managing director of Aldi in Scotland, said: “In the year ahead, we want to grow relationships with existing suppliers and cultivate new ones too.”