Dive Brief:
- 7-Eleven has added kids’ meals to all of its proprietary restaurants, the company announced on Monday.
- The deals, which are available at Laredo Taco Company, Raise the Roost Chicken & Biscuits and Speedy Café locations, start at $3.99 and include an entree, side, drink and a toy or other small item, according to the announcement.
- The news comes as 7-Eleven continues to expand its foodservice options and make its stores into dining destinations as part of its broader transformation plan.
Dive Insight:
7-Eleven has been opening more of its larger-format new standard stores and trying to double the number of proprietary QSR locations in its network over the past couple years to become more appealing. By debuting kids’ meals, the convenience retailer is once again signaling that it wants to compete directly with restaurants and become known for its food.
At Laredo Taco, the meal includes a bean and cheese taco or a cheese quesadilla, rice or beans, a small bag of tortilla chips and a small Slurpee or box of apple juice. At Raise the Roost, kids get a chicken tender, three potato wedges and a small Slurpee. Speedy Café’s meal includes the choice of a ham or turkey sandwich, dino nuggets, mac and cheese or two chicken tenders with a side of Speedy Spuds tater tots and a small Slurpee.
The additional items initially being included with these meals are Hot Wheels sticker packs or monster truck toys, according to the announcement. These are available while supplies last.
The kids meals continue 7-Eleven’s has stepped-up focus on food in recent months. In January, the retailer hired Richard Guidry, former senior vice president of foodservice for GPM Investments, as senior director of fresh foods for its convenience stores in the U.S. and Canada. Earlier this month, it added its first scaled national catering program across its restaurant brands.
As it makes these changes, 7-Eleven has also continued evolving its transformation plan, which now includes plans to renovate around 7,000 locations by 2030 using the food-focused standard design.
