7-Eleven Inc.

7-Eleven is among the world's largest and most widely recognized and iconic retailers, both inside and outside the c-store channel. The company's iconic Slurpee, Big Gulp soft drinks and fresh-made coffees have helped 7-Eleven grow throughout North America and in several countries overseas.

Convenience items range from cigarettes and magazines, to sweet and salty snacks, beer and wine. 7-Eleven distinguishes itself from the competition with its many proprietary and private-label items. On the foodservice front, the chain has recently rolled out its "fresh" initiative, adding more fresh food items across the chain. Technology meanwhile plays a major role in the brand's evolution, including its 7Rewards loyalty app, a new BillPay app, third-party delivery and even a promotional play around drone delivery.

For management purposes, corporate/franchised North American stores are organized into geographical zones. 7-Eleven Hawaii also is a franchised area, and that operation reports to Seven-Eleven Japan, not the U.S. Franchise Group in Irving. 7-Eleven Inc. is wholly owned subsidiary of Tokyo-based Seven & I Holdings Co., which is publicly-traded on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.

Its "Retailer Initiative" allows an operator to align product assortment with the store's customer preferences, it offers many proprietary and private-label items, and it has assembled a "restaurant-quality" team that is introducing more fresh foods to the chain.

Source: Convenience Digital Resource Library, Technomic