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Convenience stores have evolved becoming more than just someplace to pick up a snack, a pack of cigarettes or to use the bathroom after you gas up your car. Chains like WaWa and Sheetz have added food, coffee bars, and other upgraded services to make them more of a destination. <\/p>\n
\u201cFuel and tobacco products remain essential categories for the nation\u2019s 150,000-plus convenience stores, but sector growth is being led by store formats that feature higher quality and greater variety of prepared foods and beverages,\u201d NIQ shared in The 2024 State of Convenience.<\/p>\n
Food offerings have been improving as well.<\/p>\n
Prepared foods enjoyed a 12% increase year over year, according to the NACS 2023 State of the Industry Report.<\/p>\n
7-Eleven, one of the leaders in the convenience store space, has been evolving its store fleet to meet those changing demands. In many cases, that means a remodel, while in select cases, it has chosen to close stores that can’t meet changing demands.<\/p>\n
7-Eleven plans to close over 600 stores in 2026<\/p>\n
“As 7-Eleven eyes a 2027 IPO, the company continues adjusting its footprint, mainly through closing underperforming locations and opening new ones under its large format, food-focused design,” Convenience Store Dive reported.<\/p>\n
Some locations will also be converted to “wholesale fuel stores,\u201d which the company does not include in its store count, according to parent company Seven & i Holdings fourth-quarter earnings release.<\/p>\n
The company said it plans to continue closing underperforming stores in 2026 as part of its ongoing portfolio optimization strategy.<\/p>\n
The chain closed over 600 locations in 2024 and 2025 combined.<\/p>\n
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7-Eleven has closed stores as part of a broader effort to evolve its business to lean into food more. EMarketer Senior Retail Analyst Blake Doersch explained the chain’s changes in a recent podcast. <\/p>\n
“I think I don’t really see it as much of an expansion as it is sort of a transformation of their business model because while they are continuing to open new stores, they’ve also, I think, closed more stores than they’ve opened the past two years and planned to do the same this year. And I think it’s really because they are completely shifting their business model from just convenience store to convenience store, plus restaurant or food service outlet plus grocery,” he said.<\/p>\n
7-Eleven’s past closure at a glance:7-Eleven closed about 444 stores across the U.S. and Canada in 2024 as part of a broader portfolio review of underperforming locations, citing inflation, weaker traffic, and shifting consumer behavior, according to OPB.org.The closures represented roughly 3% of its North American store base, which totals more than 13,000 locations, reported WAFB.Industry reporting noted that closures have been part of a longer-term optimization strategy, with underperforming stores removed as the chain adjusts to shifting consumer trends, according to Convenience Store Dive.<\/p>\n
Shutterstock<\/p>\n
American convenience stores are changing<\/p>\n
How Americans use convenience stores has changed, Shell\u2019s Global Manager of Convenience Retailing Operations Richard Garcia told Nielsen NIQ.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe historical model for convenience, particularly in the U.S., is that you use fuel to attract people to your location,\u201d he shared. \u201cThat is absolutely changing to the store becoming the destination, and while they\u2019re there, you hope they might buy fuel. Now it\u2019s already happened.\u201d<\/p>\n
Many of the changes are about attracting customers more often. <\/p>\n
\u201cReally. When you look at our numbers, the average person fills up their car, I think it\u2019s 2, 2.3 times a month. The average C-store shopper comes to a convenience store more than three times a week. So, the store has become the destination,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
Fresher food has become a driver for the industry.<\/p>\n
“Today, next to standard-issue soft drinks and churros, shoppers often encounter branded coffees, premium shakes and meal offerings that can rival the quality of many quick-service restaurants. Customizable fare such as made-to-order sandwiches, hot soups and sides \u2014 even items from the grill \u2014 are making their way onto C-store menus, driving traffic for meal-based (versus gasoline-based) missions,” L.E.K. Consulting reported in its Evolving the Convenience Store report.<\/p>\n
Related: Chipotle-style chain shuts restaurants, leaves key market<\/p>\n
#Iconic #99yearold #convenience #store #chain #closing #stores<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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