NEW DELHI, India -- The U.S. convenience store sector is dominated by South Asians, according to a new report, U.S. Convenience Stores: A Market Analysis, published by research firm RNCOS. It said estimates suggest that around one-third to half of the total c-stores in the United States are owned by South Asians.
The group owns between 50,000 and 70,000 stores, the report saidciting estimates by Indo Asian News Service and littleindia magazinealmost one-third to one-half of the 140,655 c-stores it said is the total convenience retail universe in the [image-nocss] United States, with $495 billion in annual sales. (New figures from the National Association of Convenience Stores and TDLinx, a service of The Nielsen Co., currently put that total at 145,119.)
Satya Shaw, president of the Asian American Convenience Store Association (AACSA), estimated that South Asians own around 70,000 C-stores, with more than $100 billion in revenues, said the Indo Asian News Service.
Tariq Khan, chairman of the National Coalition of Associations, 7-Eleven Franchisees, who migrated to the US from Pakistan in the 1970s, said that South Asians own more than 50% of the chain's franchised stores. In California alone, out of the 1,200 7-Eleven stores, around 600 to 700 stores are held by South Asians, he said.
I really think we are the backbone of the industry. With all the bankruptcies in the 90s of convenience stores, I think Indians and Pakistanis are the reason the companies survived because we came in and bought those stores, Khan told the news service. All those stores went belly up in the Midwest and when they were gobbled up, they were gobbled up by people like myself.
As to why South Asians are getting into the industry, he joked, In this business you don't need experiencethe prices are on the merchandise. You don't even have to know much English. You can get by with good morning' and thank you' and have a nice day.' This business is also recession-proof because every morning people need the newspaper, bread, milk, coffee and cigarettes. If they don't have a job, they're likely to be still drinking coffee, perhaps having more cigarettes and certainly reading the newspaper.Members help make our journalism possible. Become a CSP member today and unlock exclusive benefits, including unlimited access to all of our content. Sign up here.