³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ

A supermarket chain has announced plans to open an additional 15 stores across Jersey, Guernsey and Alderney.

It comes after Morrisons completed the acquisition of 36 convenience stores from SandpiperCI.

The acquired stores currently operate under the Iceland, Chequers Express and Le Cocq brands.

A spokesperson for the UK retailer said: "In the coming months all stores, with the exception of the two Le Cocq stores, will be rebranded to the Morrisons format."

Jersey, which already has 16 Morrisons Daily stores, will gain eight new re-branded stores, while Guernsey, which already has three Morrisons Daily stores, will gain seven new re-branded stores.

Alderney will be home to the two unchanged Le Cocq shops.

A Morrisons spokesperson said more than £7m would be invested in a conversion and rebranding programme.

Rami Baitiéh, Morrisons chief executive, said: "I am delighted that now the transaction has completed we can welcome 520 new colleagues into the Morrisons family.

"It's a great business with great colleagues and we are all looking forward to the exciting next chapter."

Follow ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Guernsey on and . Follow ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Jersey on and . Send your story ideas to channel.islands@bbc.co.uk, external.