NEW YORK -- 7-Eleven Inc. has opened an "expansive" new convenience store in New York City's Financial District that features touchscreen ordering, free Wi-Fi, a huge flat-screen TV and an Amazon Locker, a kiosk where Amazon customers can pick up their online-ordered goods.
The new 7-Eleven opened last week and looks more like a cafe than a convenience store, with enough space to seat about 25 people.
"It's really, really cool, and it feels very different from the other 7-Elevens," one 29-year-old customer told DNAinfo.com.
She said that she was impressed with unusual features including beer tap-style beverage dispensers. "It makes for a more exciting experience," she said.
The retail outlet also offers healthier menu options, including multi-grain sandwiches, egg whites and specialty salads.
The large-screen TV displays the weather, subway delays, sports statistics and stock information.
Lena Huang, manager of 7-Eleven's digital guest experience, said the new ordering screens, TV and Amazon Locker were part of a strategy meant to enhance the store's "hangout" vibe.
"I want to make sure that people want to come back," Huang told the news website. "We want to make it everyone's neighborhood store--that's the idea."
Click here to read the complete DNAinfo.com report and to view a gallery of images of the location.
New York City is a major growth priority for the Dallas-based convenience chain; in fact it is the retailer's "No. 1 priority."
And in 2012, the retailer said it planned to add 20 locations there every year until 2017, in areas such as Midtown, Greenwich Village, Chelsea, the Upper East Side, as well as the Financial District.
"It's part of an overall growth strategy," Sean Duffy, 7-Eleven's senior vice president of development, told New York magazine in 2012 concerning grown in the Big Apple. "We saw an opportunity in Manhattan--huge traffic counts, huge pedestrian traffic, [and] the need for convenience."
7-Eleven operates, franchises or licenses more than 10,100 7-Eleven stores in North America. Globally, 7-Eleven has more than 50,700 stores in 16 countries. During 2012, 7-Eleven stores generated total worldwide sales of approximately $84.8 billion.
Read more about 7-Eleven's national growth strategy in the January issue of CSP magazine.
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