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The
operator of the 7-Eleven chain of convenience stores has been
aggressively opening stores in Japan as well as the United
States, where it has been acquiring stores from local retailers.
Its latest purchase comes as operators of traditional big-box
retailers including Seven & i have been suffering weak sales as
changing tastes and modest wage growth have prompted shoppers to
defect to cheaper specialty chains and online outlets.
"The U.S. convenience store market has growth momentum. We see
opportunities there," Seven & i President Ryuichi Isaka said at
an earnings briefing after announcing the Sunoco deal.
Seven & i runs general merchandise, department and specialty
stores, but the bulk of its operating profit comes from
convenience stores - or 86 percent of 364.6 billion yen ($3.29
billion) in the year through February.
In a statement, the firm said U.S. unit 7-Eleven Inc [SILC.UL]
has agreed to buy 1,108 Sunoco convenience stores and petrol
stations in Texas and other states in August.
Sunoco currently operates about 1,350 retail fuelling sites and
convenience stores under brands such as APlus and Stripes, the
firm's website showed.
The deal would be the biggest by 7-Eleven Inc, known for its "Slurpee"
frozen beverage. Most recently, 7-Eleven Inc acquired 79 stores
in California and Wyoming from CST Brands Inc <CST.N> in July.
Seven & i has about 19,400 7-Eleven stores in Japan and 8,700 in
the United States and Canada, including those run by
franchisees. 7-Eleven Inc has said it aims to increase its
number of stores to 10,000 over the three years through 2019.
In Japan, same-store sales in the year through February rose 1.8
percent at the 7-Eleven chain, but fell 4.2 percent at Seven &
i's Ito-Yokado general merchandise stores.
A Japanese company which is now part of Seven & i opened a
7-Eleven store as a regional licensee in 1974. The then-new
retail concept became so successful in Japan that the company
later bought out the U.S. owner of the convenience store chain.
($1 = 110.6700 yen)
(Reporting by Taiga Uranaka; Additional reporting by Ritsuko
Shimizu and Chris Gallagher; Editing by Amrutha Gayathri and
Christopher Cushing)
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