Two Angus supermarkets that have brought hundreds of jobs to the county are to open within a week of each other.
A date of November 14 has been set for the opening of Arbroath’s new Asda store on the Westway just a week after its sister outlet in Forfar opens on November 7.
An opening ceremony will be held at both shops, with the national chain currently deciding on ”local heroes” who will be VIP guests and officially declare each site open.
In Forfar, pensioner William Milne has already been selected to carry out the duties.
The 79-year-old, who has been described by the firm as a ”remarkable community champion,” will be on hand to cut the ribbon at 10am on the day.
He was nominated by friends and neighbours in and around his street, Kemsley Place, for his general community spirit, including clearing a path through the snow every day last winter.
Store manager Robert Hallyburton said: ”It will be a real honour to welcome William as our local hero to meet our colleagues in recognition of his work in Forfar.
”I want our colleagues to reflect his work ethic and sense of community and make our customers proud.”
The Forfar store is providing an initial 230 jobs in the community and will feature a George clothing department, restaurant, bakery and fresh fish counter.
The local hero for the Arbroath store is yet to be announced.
Both outlets experienced incredible demand for jobs, with more than 2,000 applications coming in for just 100 positions at the Westway site.
In Forfar a total of 2,400 people put their names forward for a job, with that number whittled down to just 230 employees who have been successful and are now being trained.
Arbroath store manager Robert Wallace said: ”During our recruitment process we have felt a strong community spirit and pride in the local area.
”Being new to Arbroath, we will work hard to be a good neighbour and we know that many of our customers are tireless in their efforts to support the area.
”That is why we want to celebrate their work and make sure that a real local hero opens the store.”