7-Eleven grows at the rate of a new store opening every three and a half hours. Really…is that even necessary? According to 7-Eleven brass, they will add another 2,000 to 2,500 more stores worldwide in 2011. Five hundred of those will be in the U.S. and Canada.
7-Eleven said they have significant room to grow. Amazingly, 7-Eleven only operates in 30 U.S. states. 7-Eleven is a subsidiary of Seven-Eleven Japan. Yes, you read that correctly. The chain started in Dallas, Texas in 1927. 7-Eleven is now looking to buy existing convenience stores and convert them to 7-Eleven’s. They are the Borg of the convenience store world. Resistance is futile.
Another head-scratching factoid is that with a gazillion stores, 7-Eleven stores make up only 5% of the total number of convenience stores in our great nation. Again, you read that correctly. Cigarettes are 7-Eleven’s biggest selling item; however, customers can expect to see more hot food and bakery items down the road.
The chain also has a large private-label program thereby allowing them, sometimes, to only sell the 7-Eleven brand of a particular product. Less than half of 7-Eleven’s stores sell gasoline, which helps the company open stores faster and in smaller spaces. On the other hand, 80% of U.S. convenience stores sell fuel.
Oh thank heaven for 7-Eleven…evidently.