STAFF at an upmarket US-owned supermarket are set to lose their jobs as the store is set to close in the run up to Christmas.

Whole Foods Market has been based at the site of a former Safeway and cinema in Fenwick Road, Giffnock, East Renfrewshire, for the past six years.

Staff have been told a month-long consultation is to begin over the closure plans, three months after the firm was bought by Amazon for $13.7 billion (£10.4bn).

The owners are reportedly keen to make cutbacks and it is understood that the Giffnock branch failed to hit performance targets and the number of people employed at the store fell to 88.

A spokesman for Whole Foods said: “A decision on the future of the stores will be made after the company has consulted with team members to discuss the proposal. In the event that the decision is taken to close the stores, we will work with team members to explore alternative employment opportunities.

“We remain committed to the UK market and will continue to look for ways to offer high-quality natural and organics to our customers.”

It is a blow to hundreds of Scottish suppliers and the local community, who use the coffee bar as a meeting point.

Wholefoods’ only other store outside London, in Cheltenham, is also set to shut.