7-Eleven

Parent Company: Seven & i Holdings Co. Ltd

Brand value: $8,911 million

Headquarter city: Tokyo, Japan

Industry: Retail

Year formed: 1974

7-Eleven is a convenience store chain that originated in 1927 in the United States, and has been owned by Japan’s Seven & i Holdings Co. Ltd partially since 1991 and fully since 2005. 7-Eleven is one of the largest retail chains in the world and is the largest convenience store chain in Japan with more than 20,000 stores, most of which are open 24 hours a day. Since opening its first Japanese store in 1974, 7-Eleven has achieved success by adapting to suit local tastes: from sales of rice balls and lunchboxes, to high-touch customer service, to Japanese-style efficiency systems, to configuring each store offering according to the composition of its local neighborhoods, 7-Eleven has become a very Japanese success story. Today, the company continues to grow abroad while maintaining its appeal in Japan through a steady stream of new product offerings and services that range from banking to bill payment. In the past year 7-Eleven has responded to a Japanese labor shortage by experimenting with limited hours at some stores, as well as investing in greater automation and AI at the register and in restocking. The brand is also experimenting with bicycle-sharing stations, parcel-delivery lockers, and new vending machine formats to boost same-store sales. Seven & i Holdings Co Ltd is listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.