Dive Brief:
- 7-Eleven saw its revenue from operations in North America drop by 18% during Q2 compared to the same period in 2024, parent company Seven & i Holdings revealed in its earnings report on Thursday.
- Revenue dropped from about 2.4 trillion yen, or $15.8 billion, in Q2 2024 to roughly 1.9 trillion yen, or $13 billion, in the same period this year. 7-Eleven said in its earnings statement that “the North American economy showed signs of slowing down” during the quarter, notably through decreased spending from low-income, cost-conscious households.
- The down quarter for revenue comes as 7-Eleven continues to close hundreds of underperforming stores across North America — especially the U.S. — and focuses its attention on building bigger, food-focused locations.
Dive Insight:
Late last year, 7-Eleven revealed plans to shutter 444 underperforming stores amid the difficult spending environment and its operational shift to opening larger food-centric sites. The company slightly overshot that number: Between August 2024 and 2025, even with dozens of store openings, the retailer’s footprint shrank by 445 sites — including a net reduction of 125 this summer, according to its earnings update released on Thursday.
As it has over the past year, 7-Eleven again on Thursday reiterated its “transformation” strategy to rebound its business in North America through bringing in new fresh food offerings and making its stores larger and more appealing to visit.
“During this period, the Company is rebuilding its management foundation to secure future growth and implementing initiatives to achieve results as soon as possible,” 7-Eleven said on Thursday.
Early signs indicate this strategy is working. In August, Seven & i President and CEO Stephen Dacus said these new locations were bringing in 45% higher sales per store than the retailer’s traditional locations. In Thursday’s earnings report, 7-Eleven noted that although its revenue fell, operating income remained relatively steady and actually increased by about $13 million compared to the same period last year.
The 5,000-square-foot new standard stores, which launched in October 2024, often feature one of 7-Eleven’s QSRs as well as freshly made grab-and-go offerings like breaded chicken salads and chicken salad and smoked turkey sandwiches, along with 7-Eleven’s famed egg sandwiches.
