7-Eleven, Inc.

170px
Type	Subsidiary
Industry	Retail (convenience stores)
Founded	1927 (1927)
Headquarters	Dallas, Texas, United States
Number of locations	39,000+
Key people	Joseph DePinto, President/CEO
Products	Slurpee beverage Big Gulp beverage Cup Other products include: coffee, sandwiches, prepared foods, gasoline, dairy products, various beverages
Revenue	$16.681 billion (Estimated) US$ (2009)[1]
Employees	45,000 (2010 NA)
Parent	Seven & I Holdings Co. Ltd.
Website	7-eleven.com 7andi.com sej.co.jp

7-Eleven is part of an international chain of convenience stores, operating under Seven-Eleven Japan Co. Ltd, which in turn is owned by Seven & I Holdings Co. of Japan.^[2]

7-Eleven, primarily operating as a franchise, is the world's largest operator, franchisor and licensor of convenience stores, with more than 46,000 outlets,^[3] surpassing the previous record-holder McDonald's Corporation in 2007 by approximately 1,000 retail stores.^[4] The American subsidiary of the Japanese firm has its headquarters in the One Arts Plaza building in downtown Dallas, Texas.^[5] Its stores are located in 16 countries, with its largest markets being Japan, the United States, Canada, the Philippines, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Malaysia and Thailand.^[6]

History[link]

One Arts Plaza, which houses the U.S. headquarters of 7-Eleven

The company has its origins in 1927 in Dallas, Texas, when an employee of Southland Ice Company, Joe C. Thompson, started selling milk, eggs and bread from an ice house.^[7][8] The original location was an improvised storefront at Southland Ice Company, an ice-manufacturing plant owned by John Jefferson Green. Although small grocery stores and general merchandisers were present in the immediate area, Thompson, the manager of the ice plant, discovered selling convenience items, such as bread and milk, was popular due to the ice's ability to preserve the items. This significantly cut back on the need to travel long distances to the grocery stores for basic items. Thompson eventually bought the Southland Ice Company and turned it into Southland Corporation, which oversaw several locations which opened in the Dallas area. Initially, these stores were open from 7 am to 11 pm, hours unprecedented in their length, hence the name. The company began to use the 7-Eleven name in 1946. By 1952, 7-Eleven opened its 100th store. It was incorporated as Southland Corporation in 1961.^[9]

In 1962, 7-Eleven first experimented with a 24-hour schedule in Austin, Texas.^[10] By 1963, 24-hour stores were established in Las Vegas, Fort Worth, and Dallas.^[11]

In the 1980s, the company encountered financial difficulty, selling off its ice division, and was rescued from bankruptcy by Ito-Yokado, its largest franchisee. In 1987, John Philp Thompson, the CEO of 7-Eleven, completed a $5.2 billion management buyout of the company his father had founded.^[12] The buyout suffered from the 1987 stock market crash and after failing initially to raise high yield debt financing, the company was required to offer a portion of the company's stock as an inducement to invest in the company's bonds.^[13][14]

The Japanese company gained a controlling share of 7-Eleven in 1991,^[9] during the Japanese asset bubble of the early 1990s. Ito-Yokado formed Seven & I Holdings Co. and 7-Eleven became its subsidiary in 2005. In 2007, Seven & I Holdings announced it would be expanding their American operations, with an additional 1,000 7-Eleven stores in the United States.

Products and services[link]

Among 7-Eleven's offerings are private label products, including Slurpee, a partially frozen soft drink introduced in 1967,^[15] and the Big Gulp introduced in 1980^[15] that packaged soft drinks in large cups ranging in size from 20 to 64 U.S. fluid ounces (0.59 to 1.9 liters).

Other products[link]

In addition to Slurpee and the Big Gulp, 7-Eleven would come to own or operate several brands of food and concepts, including Movie Quik, an in-store video-rental service; Citgo, the gas brand sold at many locations up until 2006; as well as Chief Auto Parts, which had locations adjacent to or near several 7-Eleven locations. They bought White Hen Inc. on August 10, 2006, mostly in or around the Chicago area, and plan to convert all of the remaining White Hens to 7-Eleven stores.

Since 2005, the company has offered 7-Eleven Speak Out Wireless, a prepaid phone service where a cellphone can be purchased directly from a 7-Eleven store in the United States or Canada and activated on the spot.

The 7-Eleven convenience store announced on November 3, 2009 that it was releasing two low-priced proprietary wines in the United States and Japan (under the "Yosemite Road" brand).^[16]

Around the world[link]

Asia-Pacific[link]

Australia[link]

The first 7-Eleven in Australia opened on August 24, 1977 in the Melbourne suburb of Oakleigh. There are currently 565 stores in the states of Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland; the majority of stores are in metropolitan areas, particularly in CBD areas. Stores in suburban areas often operate as petrol stations. Stores are owned and operated as franchises, with a central administration.

7-Eleven stores sell gift cards including three types of prepaid VISA cards. There are daily newspapers, drinks, confectionery, and snack foods. They sell pre-prepared food such as sandwiches, wraps, pies, sausage rolls under their proprietary brand 'munch' delivered fresh into stores daily.

7-Eleven stores have partnered with BankWest and have BankWest ATMs in all of their stores.^[17]

Every year on 7 November, one small cup of free Slurpee is given to each customer in honor to Seven Eleven Day. (November is the 11th month which makes it 7/11)^[18]

In March 2010, the company ran a promotion where every customer purchasing fuel received a free small Slurpee.

7-Eleven has acquired 295 Mobil service stations in New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia and Victoria that were originally planned for sale to Caltex. Twenty-nine sites in South Australia were subsequently on sold to Peregrine Corporation, to be badged as On the Run convenience stores.^[19][20]

China[link]

7-Eleven has been operating in the People's Republic of China in cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin, Shenzhen and Guangzhou, since 2008. Some stores were open since 1996. It offers little or no brand name items like Slurpee. However, they offer a wide array of warm food, including traditional items like the steamed, filled bun. Also sold are some beverages, alcohol, candy, periodicals, and other convenience items. As of April, 2009, there were 591 7-Eleven locations in mainland China.^{[citation needed]} Although Beijing locations were originally planned to be open "from 7:00 am until 11:00 pm, to suit the lifestyle of Beijingers",^[21] the majority are open 24 hours every day.

Hong Kong[link]

7-Eleven, nicknamed "Little 7" (Chat Jai) by the locals, has operated in Hong Kong since 1981 under the ownership of Dairy Farm. With most locations being in urbanized areas, approximately 40 percent are franchised stores. In September 2004, Dairy Farm acquired Daily Stop, a convenience store chain located mainly in the territory's MTR stations, and converted them to 7-Eleven stores. As of 2009, it has 950 stores and made it a second place for the highest density of 7-Eleven stores after Macau, with 1 shop per each 1.16 km².

Japan[link]

Japan's first 7-Eleven Store in Kōtō, Tokyo, opened in May 1974

Japan has more 7-Eleven locations than anywhere else in the world, where they often bear the title of its holding company "Seven & I Holdings". Of the 39,153 stores around the globe, 12,925 of them are located in Japan with 1,713 in Tokyo alone.

The feel and look of the store is somewhat different from that of the U.S. 7-Elevens. In Japan they offer a wider selection of products and services. Japanese 7-Elevens offer not only food, drinks, and magazines, but also video games and consoles, music CDs, DVDs, digital cardreaders as well as seasonal items like Christmas cakes, Valentine's Day chocolates, and fireworks. Slurpees and Big Gulp super size soft drinks were introduced in the early 1980s but discontinued some years later.

On September 1, 2005, Seven & I Holdings Co., Ltd., a new holding company, became the parent company of 7-Eleven, Ito Yokado, and Denny's Japan.

Macau[link]

7-Eleven entered the Macau market in 2005 under the ownership of Dairy Farm, the same conglomeration group operating Hong Kong's 7-Eleven. With only 29.5km², Macau has 45 stores, making it a single market that has the highest density of 7-Eleven stores, with one store for each 0.65km².

Malaysia[link]

Malaysian 7-Elevens are owned by 7-Eleven Malaysia Sdn. Bhd. which now operates 1,359 stores nationwide (as of January 2011). 7-Eleven in Malaysia was incorporated on June 4, 1984 by the Berjaya Group Berhad. The first 7-Eleven store in Malaysia was opened in October 1984, in Jalan Bukit Bintang, Kuala Lumpur. In October 2008, 7-Eleven achieved a milestone opening of its 1,000th store in Bandar Sunway, Selangor. It is today the market leader in convenience store chain landscape in Malaysia.^{[citation needed]}

Philippines[link]

In the Philippines, 7-Eleven is run by the Philippine Seven Corporation (PSC). Its first store opened in 1984. In 2000, President Chain Store Corporation (PCSC) of Taiwan, also a licensee of 7-Eleven, bought the majority shares of PSC and thus formed a strategic alliance for the convenience store industry within the area.

Indonesia[link]

In April 2009, 7-Eleven announced plans to expand its business in Indonesia through a Master Franchise agreement with Modern Putra Indonesia (a subsidiary of Modern Group, FujiFilm distributor in Indonesia) of Jakarta. Modern Putra Indonesia's initial plans are to focus on opening stores in Jakarta, targeting densely populated commercial and office areas, to offer working Indonesians a convenient place to shop for lunch, snacks and emergency items. Other major cities, such as Bandung, Semarang and Surabaya, offer future expansion opportunities.^[22]

Indonesian government stated in May 2010 that they will monitor 7-Eleven expansion since it is licensed as convenience store not as mini markets. Indonesian law limits mini market ownership to local companies.^[23]

Singapore[link]

A 7-Eleven outlet in Singapore

In Singapore, 7-Eleven forms the largest chain of convenience stores island-wide. There are at present 545 7-Eleven stores scattered throughout the country. Stores in Singapore are operated by the Dairy Farm International Holdings, franchised under a licensing agreement with 7-Eleven Incorporated, headquartered in the United States.

The first 7-Eleven stores were operated in 1983 with a franchise license under the Jardine Matheson Group. The license was then acquired by Cold Storage Singapore, a subsidiary of the Dairy Farm Group, in 1989. At present, 7-Eleven plans to expand its base to include 300 stores, within the next few years. In 2006, 7-Eleven (Singapore) signed an agreement with Shell Singapore to operate its "Shell Select" convenience stores in all its petrol stations island-wide.^[24] In September 2007, the change-over of Shell Select stores to 7-Eleven were fully completed.^[25]

7-Eleven stores in Singapore operate around the clock, except for stores in Biopolis, hospitals, MRT Stations, some shopping centres, Raffles Institution (Junior College), ITE College West, Singapore Polytechnic, Republic Polytechnic and Nanyang Technological University, which have shorter operating hours.

South Korea[link]

7-Eleven has a presence in the South Korean convenience store market where it competes with Mini Stop, GS25 (formerly LG25), Family Mart and independent competitors. There are 2,282 7-Eleven stores in Korea, with only the United States, Japan, Thailand and Taiwan hosting more stores. Branded products such as Slurpee or Big Gulp are no longer carried in South Korean stores.

Taiwan[link]

Two 7-Eleven stores at the same intersection

In Taiwan, the 7-Eleven is the most popular convenience store, and is owned by the Uni-President chain store under Uni-President Enterprises Corporation. The first store opened in 1980 and since then has grown to cover 4,744 stores as of March 25, 2010.^[26] Taiwan has the world's fourth largest collection of 7-Eleven convenience stores after Japan, U.S., and Thailand. With 6,200 potential shoppers per store, Taiwan also has the smallest number of potential shoppers per 7-Eleven convenience store (compared to Japan's 14,946 potential customers for each 7-Eleven and the United States' 48,359 customers for each store). With such a high density of stores, it is not an unusual scene in Taiwan for two 7-Eleven stores to stand face to face across an intersection.

Thailand[link]

The franchise in Thailand is the CP ALL Public Company Limited, which in turn grants franchises to operators. There are about 6,000 7-Elevens in Thailand, half of which are in Bangkok, making Thailand have the 3rd largest number of stores after the US and Japan.^[26] CP All, the operator of 7-Eleven convenience stores in Thailand, plans to increase their number to more than 7,000 stores by 2013. CP All operated 6,300 stores in 2011 and will aim at 6,800 in 2012. 7-Eleven in Japan operates 13,000 stores, the most in the world, followed by 6,500 in the US and CP All's 6,300 in Thailand. Mr Piyawat said the company plans spending of 5 billion baht to expand business this year. Of the total, 2 billion will be used to open 500 new outlets, one billion to renovate existing stores and the rest to develop a new distribution centre in the East.^[27]

North America[link]

Canada[link]

A 7-Eleven Store with gas station in Woodstock, Ontario, Canada

In Canada, a limited number of 7-Eleven locations have filling stations with gasoline distributed by Shell Canada, Petro-Canada, or Esso. In November 2005, 7-Eleven started offering a wireless service called Speak Out Wireless. They also usually have Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce ATMs. The first 7-Eleven store to open was in Calgary on June 29, 1969. There were 457 7-Eleven stores as of January 1, 2010.^[28] Winnipeg has the world's largest number of slurpee consumers, with an estimated 1,500,000 slurpees sold since the first 7-Eleven opened on March 21, 1970. All 7-Eleven locations in Canada are currently corporately operated.^[29]

7-Eleven abandoned the Ottawa market as of December 2009 selling all its six outlets there to regional convenience chain Quickie. Following concerns over the fate of 7-Eleven's popular discount mobile phone plan SpeakOut, Quickie offered to assume existing SpeakOut customers and phones into its Good2Go cellphone program.^[30][31]

Mexico[link]

In Mexico, 7-Eleven was called Super 7. In 1995, the name changed to 7-Eleven. When stores are located within classic buildings (such as in Historic Center) or important buildings, the logo at the entrance shows no colors; instead, letters are golden or silver. Main competitors in Mexico are OXXO (Femsa), Super City (Soriana) and other local competitors.

--72.231.216.195 (talk) 05:10, 1 June 2012 (UTC)====United States====

7-Eleven currently has more than 8,200 owned, operated and franchised stores in the United States-almost all as franchises.^[32]

Once ubiquitous, 7-Eleven stores are no longer found in some Midwestern and Southeastern states. In May 1998, it was announced that 113 7-Eleven stores would be sold and converted into Kum & Go stores. In this same time frame, 7-Eleven exited the Minnesota market and sold all its Minnesota stores to SuperAmerica. This led to situations, especially in larger cities like Minneapolis and Saint Paul, where multiple SuperAmerica locations could be found on the same intersection. In states like Minnesota, Iowa, and Wisconsin, other convenience stores like Holiday Station Stores, SuperAmerica, QuikTrip, Kwik Trip, Casey's, and Speedway occupy the same market.

7-Eleven in Oklahoma City advertising the Icy Drink. Outlets in Oklahoma do not sell the item under the traditional name Slurpee.

The only independently owned 7-Eleven stores are located in the Oklahoma City, Oklahoma metropolitan area. About 125 stores are owned by the family of William C. Brown (currently run by son Jim Brown) under special arrangement with the company since 1953. William C. Brown's father was a business associate and family friend of John Thompson. "Bill" had recently graduated from the University of Notre Dame and struck out on a quest to find an area "ripe" for the concept. During his travels he met the Tulsa based QuikTrip chain owner who suggested OKC to Brown. Narrowing down the choices he decided upon Oklahoma and opened store No.1 at NW 23rd & N. Portland Avenue in OKC.^{[citation needed]} At their inception the Thompson family were part owners of the OKC stores but never the Corporation. Brown would work a shift at the original store and afterwards would scout new locations to build. The "Oh Thank Heaven for 7-Eleven" phrase was coined by the Stanford Agency the in-house ad agency for 7-Eleven (1954–1981) in 1969. These stores carry a slightly different product selection than other 7-Eleven stores in the U.S. as they do not serve hot dogs or nachos. Instead, they have their own bakeries, called Seventh Heaven.^[33] Also, due to this agreement, they carry a non-7-Eleven branded product in lieu of the Slurpee, the Icy Drink, which is not to be confused with the ICEE.^[34] The one side effect to this arrangement is that national advertising campaigns and promotions (e.g. movie marketing tie-ins) cannot be used.

In the Pennsylvania market -- a market noted for innovation within the convenience store industry -- 7-Eleven competes with Turkey Hill from Lancaster, Wawa from the Philadelphia area, and Sheetz from Altoona. 7-Eleven has no presence in the Altoona–State College–Johnstown area because of Sheetz,^[35] but is predominant in the Pittsburgh region where Sheetz also dominates, as well as South Central Pennsylvania around the state capital of Harrisburg. 7-Eleven is also absent in several cities in Texas (Houston, Galveston, Beaumont, San Antonio - 7-Elevens in these cities after 1988 were sold to National Convenience Stores, which owns the Stop & Go franchise ^[36], later acquired by Diamond Shamrock in November 1995 ^[37], now part of Valero since 2006), even though the United States headquarters is based there.^[38] 7-Elevens are prevalent in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, Temple, Killeen, Fort Hood, and Austin, TX (primarily on the Interstate 35 corridor), in West Texas (Midland, Lubbock, El Paso - the West Texas locations west of Interstate 35 are co-branded with Fina gas stations, part of Alon USA's retail business interests which includes Southwest Convenience Stores; 7-Elevens with Fina gas stations are licensed franchises), and two individual franchises in Smithville and San Marcos, TX. The current Texas locations are located north of Interstate 10 and west of the Interstate 35 corridor including the Smithville, TX location east of Bastrop, TX. In North Carolina, 7-Elevens were only seen in the northeastern part of the state, as part of the Hampton Roads market, between 1988 and 2012. In the rest of the state, there are several equivalents. 7-Eleven has little to no presence in the Albany, New York market due to the prominence there of Stewart's Shops, a local chain.

In 1987, Southland acquired High's Dairy Stores of Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C., many of which were converted to 7-Elevens.

In March 2007, it was announced that 7-Eleven would sell its corporately owned stores in northern Texas and in Florida to franchisees;^[39] the chain has been franchising stores since 1964. The sale will make 7-Eleven virtually a franchise-only operation in six years.

7-Eleven is moving toward franchising most of its remaining corporate locations inside the United States. The 7-Eleven franchise system splits the gross profits 50/50 or close to it, between the company and the individual franchisee. The initial 7-Eleven franchise term is 15 years. The franchise fee and other upfront fees collected by 7-Eleven from a newly approved franchisee, in addition to ongoing 50:50 sharing of profits, is not transferable to another incoming franchisee in the same store, for the unexpired portion, if any, of the current 15 year contract. For example if one pays full franchise fee for 15 years and has to leave the store after one year due to any reason, they stand to lose the franchise fee for the remaining 14 years of their term.

Supermarket News ranked 7-Eleven's North American operations No. 11 in the 2007 "Top 75 North American Food Retailers" based on 2006 fiscal year estimated sales of $15.0 billion.^[40] Based on 2005 revenue, 7-Eleven is the twenty-fourth largest retailer in the United States.^[41]

Sign on a 7-Eleven filling station pump

In the United States, many 7-Eleven locations used to have filling stations with gasoline distributed by Citgo, which in 1983 was purchased by Southland Corporation (and 50% of Citgo was subsequently sold in 1986 to Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A. and the remaining 50% in 1990). Although Citgo was the predominant partner of 7-Eleven, other oil companies are also co-branded with 7-Eleven, including Fina, Exxon, Gulf, Marathon, BP, Sunoco, and Pennzoil. Alon USA is the largest 7-Eleven licensee in North America.

On September 27, 2006, 7-Eleven announced its 20-year contract with Citgo was coming to an end and would not be renewed. 7-Eleven Spokeswoman Margaret Chabris said "Regardless of politics, we sympathize with many Americans' concern over derogatory comments about our country and its leadership recently made by Venezuela's president Hugo Chávez. Certainly Chávez's position and statements over the past year or so didn't tempt us to stay with Citgo." Later she said that "People are making it out to be more than it is."^[42] Citgo's Chief Executive Felix Rodriguez responded with a correction the following day, accusing 7-Eleven of exploiting the situation to score political points against Chavez, and pointing out that Citgo's decision to terminate the contract with 7-Eleven had been made in July, for practical and economic reasons: "[The reports are] a manipulation because ever since the month of July have we announced that we did not intend to renew a contract with 7-Eleven, which was 20 years old and that was part of a bad business deal for Venezuela."^[43] A statement found on Citgo's homepage stated, "The 7-Eleven contract did not fit within CITGO's strategy to balance sales with refinery production after the sale of its interest in a Houston area refinery."

At locations that have already phased out Citgo fuel, 7-Eleven is no longer accepting Citgo's credit cards. 7-Eleven stores that have removed the Citgo sign usually replace it with an "Oh Thank Heaven!" or "Fast and Fresh" sign on the main sign display, and simply place the 7-Eleven logo on the canopy over the pumps.

In more recent years, however, many gas station locations being built have a 7-Eleven, including the acquisition of BP's "Shop" brand on several locations in the New York metropolitan area. 7-Eleven major competitor is Royal Farms. 7-Eleven signed an agreement with ExxonMobil's retail interests in December 2010 by acquiring 183 sites in Florida^[44] and in August 2011 by acquiring 51 of their On The Run stores to the existing 239 locations in the DFW Metroplex.^[45] 7-Eleven expanded their business interests with a partnership with DFW-based Cinemark Theatres after July 2011 where the Slurpee beverage is sold at Cinemark locations in Dallas, Portland, OR, and Houston, TX (which is deemed as a re-entry into the Houston, TX metro area since 1988). In past years, 7-Eleven had their marketing tie-in with blockbuster summer film releases on their Big Gulp and Slurpee cups and partnering with Cinemark officially marks the first time that a 7-Eleven branded product is sold outside its parent franchise since this was demonstrated at a Dallas, TX sports arena.^[46] Citibank ATMs can be found in locations across the United States.

On April 27, 2011 7-Eleven signed an agreement to purchase Wilson Farms, a Buffalo, New York-based convenience store chain with 188 outlets in New York state. The addition of Wilson Farms significantly increased 7-Eleven’s presence in the western New York area.

In 2012, 7-Eleven entered into an agreement with Sam's Mart convenience stores to purchase 55 stores in the Charlotte, North Carolina market and convert them to the 7-Eleven brand. This marked 7-Eleven's re-entry into the Charlotte market after a 24 year absence.

Scandinavia[link]

7-Eleven in Bergen, Norway

The owner of the master franchise for 7-Eleven in Scandinavia is Reitan Servicehandel, a part of the Norwegian retail group Reitan Group. All stores are franchised, and 7-Eleven often tries to place the stores on corners in city centers. After Reitangruppen bought the filling station chain HydroTexaco (now YX Energy) in Norway and Denmark in 2006 it has announced that several of the stores at the filling stations will be rebranded 7-Eleven and the petrol will be supplied by Shell, others will remain under the YX-concept.

Denmark[link]

7-Eleven in Strøget, Copenhagen

The first Danish 7-Eleven was opened in Østerbro on September 14, 1993. As of October, 2011, there are more than 190 stores, mostly in Copenhagen, Århus, Aalborg and Odense, including 8 stores at Copenhagen Central Station. In Denmark 7-Eleven has an agreement with Shell, with a nationwide network of Shell/7-Eleven service stations, and an agreement with DSB to have 7-Eleven at most S-tog-stations.

Norway[link]

In Norway, the first 7-Eleven was opened at Grünerløkka in Oslo on September 13, 1986. As of October 1, 2010, there are 110 7-Eleven stores in Norway, more than half of these are in Oslo. Norway has the northernmost 7-Eleven in the world, situated in Tromsø. On a per-capita basis, Norway has one 7–Eleven store for every 47,000 Norwegians, compared to Canada, which has one for every 74,000 Canadians.

Sweden[link]

The first European location of 7-Eleven was Swedish; the first 7-Eleven in Sweden was opened on Tomtebogatan in Stockholm in 1980. Reitan Servicehandel Sverige has the license in Sweden. In the mid-1990s, 7-Eleven in Sweden received adverse publicity, resulting in many stores being sold and closed down. For a time there were only 7-Elevens in Stockholm and Gothenburg. 7-Eleven returned to the south of Sweden in 2001 when a convenience store opened in Lund. As of the end of 2008, there are 77 7-Elevens in Sweden: most of them in Stockholm, 16 in Gothenburg, 8 in southern Sweden (including two in Lund, two in Helsingborg, three in Malmö and one located at Malmö-Sturup Airport). After an agreement with Shell on August 27, 2007, 112 Shell Select-outlets will be remade into 7-Eleven as of April 2009.

Rankings[link]

7-Eleven has been consistently ranked in Entrepreneur's Franchise 500,^[47] most recently being selected as the No.1 overall franchise. In addition, they were also ranked No.38 in Fastest-Growing Franchises^[48] and No.2 in Low Cost Franchises.^[49] In 2008, 7-Eleven was named the number one franchise by Entrepreneur, beating out Subway, which had held the number one spot for 15 years.^[50]

The name[link]

The company's first convenience outlets were known as Tote'm stores since customers "toted" away their purchases, and some even sported genuine Alaskan totem poles in front. In 1946, Tote'm became 7-Eleven to reflect the stores' new, extended hours—7 a.m. until 11 pm, seven days a week.^[51] The company's corporate name was changed from Southland Corporation to 7-Eleven, Inc. in 1999.

Parodies[link]

In a July 2007 promotional event, 11 U.S. 7-Elevens were temporarily transformed into Kwik-E-Marts, like this Seattle store.

• 7-Eleven is parodied in The Simpsons television series, as a convenience store called Kwik-E-Mart.^[52]
• 7-Eleven is also parodied in the Grand Theft Auto series of video games as a chain of convenience stores called 24/7
• 7-Eleven is parodied in Beavis and Butt-head as a convenience store called the Maxi Mart.
• 7-Eleven is parodied in the Mindless Self Indulgence song 'Seven Eleven':

"Girls from Seven-Eleven stay up all night. 24 hours a day! Girls from Seven-Eleven stay up all night. Seven whole days a week! Girls from seven-eleven stay up all night, and I could get a discount."

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: 7-Eleven

• 7-Eleven global sites index
• 7-Eleven Official

Richard Duane "Rick" Warren (born January 28, 1954) is an American evangelical Christian minister and author.^[1][2][3] He is the founder and senior pastor of Saddleback Church, an evangelical megachurch located in Lake Forest, California, currently the eighth-largest church in the United States (this ranking includes multi-site churches).^[4] He is also a bestselling author of many Christian books, including his guide to church ministry and evangelism, The Purpose Driven Church, which has spawned a series of conferences on Christian ministry and evangelism. He is perhaps best known for the subsequent devotional The Purpose Driven Life which has sold over 30 million copies, making Warren a New York Times bestselling author.^[5][6]

Warren holds conservative theological views^[7] and holds traditional evangelical views on social issues such as abortion, same-sex marriage, and embryonic stem-cell research. Warren has called on churches worldwide to also focus their efforts on fighting poverty and disease, expanding educational opportunities for the marginalized, and caring for the environment. During the 2008 United States presidential election, Warren hosted the Civil Forum on The Presidency at his church with both presidential candidates, John McCain and Barack Obama. Obama later sparked controversy when he asked Warren to give the invocation at the presidential inauguration in January 2009.^[8]

Biography[link]

Early life and education[link]

Warren was born in San Jose, California, the son of Jimmy and Dot Warren. His father was a Baptist minister, his mother a high school librarian.^{[clarification needed]} He was raised in Ukiah, California, and graduated from Ukiah High School in 1972, where he founded the first Christian club on the school's campus, The Fishers of Men Club.^[9] His sister Chaundel is married to Saddleback pastor Tom Holladay. His brother Jim C. Warren died in 2007.

Warren received a Bachelor of Arts degree from California Baptist University in Riverside, California; a Master of Divinity degree from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (1979) in Fort Worth, Texas; and a Doctor of Ministry degree from Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California.^[10]

Personal[link]

Warren has been married to Elizabeth K. Warren (Kay) for 32 years in 2011. They have three adult children (Amy, Josh, and Matthew) and four grandchildren. He considers Billy Graham, Peter Drucker and his own father to be among his mentors.

Due to the success of his book sales, in 2005 Warren returned his 25 years of salary to the church and discontinued taking a salary. He says he and his wife became "reverse tithers", giving away 90% of their income and living off 10%.^[11]

Career[link]

Warren says he was called to full-time ministry when he was a 19-year-old student at California Baptist University. In November 1973, he and a friend skipped classes and drove 350 miles to hear W.A. Criswell preach at the Jack Tar Hotel, in San Francisco.^[12] Warren waited afterwards to shake hands with Criswell who focused on Warren stating "I feel led to lay hands on you and pray for you!”^[12]

During his time at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Warren worked at the Texas Ranch for Christ, a ministry facility of Billie Hanks, Jr., where he began writing books. He co-wrote two books, The Victory Scripture Memory Series and the Twelve Dynamic Bible Study Methods for Laity, with Billi Hanks, Jr. and Wayne Watts.^[13]

In April 1980 Warren held Saddleback Church's first public service on Easter Sunday at the Laguna Hills High School Theater with 200 people in attendance. Warren's church growth methods led to rapid expansion, with the church using nearly 80 different facilities in its 28-year history.

Saddleback did not build its first permanent building until it had 10,000 weekly attenders. When the current Lake Forest campus was purchased in the early 1990s, a 2,300-seat plastic tent was used for worship services for several years, with four services each weekend. In 1995 the current Worship Center was completed, with a seating capacity of 3,500. A multi-million dollar children's ministry building and a staff office building were completed over the next few years. In June 2008, a $20 million student ministry facility called the "Refinery" was completed, housing the "Wildside" middle school and "HSM" high school ministries, consisting of 1,500 students. Saddleback Church averages nearly 20,000 people in attendance each week, and is currently the eighth-largest church in the United States.^[14]

Rick Warren speaking at TED in 2006

Warren has been invited to speak at national and international forums, including the United Nations, the World Economic Forum in Davos, the African Union, the Council on Foreign Relations, Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, TED, and Time’s Global Health Summit. He was an elected member of the Council on Foreign Relations between 2005 and 2006, and ^[15] was named one of "America's Top 25 Leaders" in the October 31, 2005, issue of U.S. News and World Report.^[10] Warren was named by Time magazine as one of "15 World Leaders Who Mattered Most in 2004" and one of the "100 Most Influential People in the World" (2005).^[16] In 2006 Newsweek called him one of "15 People Who Make America Great".^[17]

In August 2008, Warren drew greater national attention by hosting the Civil Forum on the Presidency that featured senators John McCain and Barack Obama at Saddleback Church. Warren said the goal of the forum was to “restore civility in our civil discourse.”^[18] The forum marked McCain and Obama's first joint appearance as the presumptive Republican and Democratic presidential nominees, and was broadcast live on national television. During the two-hour event, each candidate took the stage separately for about an hour to respond to Warren’s questions about faith and moral issues including abortion and human rights.

In December 2008, President-elect Obama chose Warren to give the invocation at his inauguration ceremony. The decision angered pro-choice and LGBT advocates and led to criticism of both Obama and Warren.^[19] Obama defended his choice of Warren, saying that although he disagreed with the minister's positions on abortion and same-sex marriage, there should be room for dialogue on such difficult social issues.^[20] More controversy ensued when it was announced that Warren would be the keynote speaker at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Annual Commemorative Service on January 19, 2009, the day prior to the inauguration.^[21] On January 20, 2009, Warren delivered the Invocation, which was generally praised for its positive message.^[22]

In January 2009, Warren and the Readers Digest Association partnered in the launch of the Purpose Driven Connection, a quarterly publication sold as part of a bundle of multimedia products.^[23] In November 2009, the partners announced that the magazine had not drawn enough paying members and would cease after publication of the fourth issue that month.^[24]

Warren has been invited to speak at John Piper's Desiring God Conference 2010 in Minneapolis, MN.^[25]

Ministries[link]

Warren and his wife are directors of the following non-profit organizations:

• Acts of Mercy
• RKW Legacy Partners
• Equipping the Church

Purpose Driven[link]

Purpose Driven comes from the teaching of Warren, and came into use as a paradigm taught to pastors and other Christian leaders worldwide to help them be more effective in leading their churches. The teaching is embodied in Warren’s best-selling book, The Purpose Driven Church, first published in 1995. Over 400,000 pastors and church leaders from around the world have attended a seminar or conference led by Warren and other pastors who seek to be more effective in fulfilling the Biblical Great Commission and Great Commandment.^{[citation needed]} Purpose Driven refers to these pastors' attempts to balance the five "purposes"; worship, fellowship, discipleship, ministry, and evangelism in their churches.

Christian leaders in 162 countries have used materials which stem from this movement.^{[citation needed]} Warren says his organizations have trained 400,000 pastors worldwide.^[26] Some 189,000 church leaders subscribe to Ministry Toolbox, the weekly newsletter.^{[citation needed]}

Others express concern over what is described as the divisive nature of Warren's techniques. Wall Street Journal writer Suzanne Sataline cited examples of congregations who have split over the growth strategies and congregations that have expelled members who fought changes. She wrote, "Warren acknowledges that splits occur in congregations that adopt his ideas, though he says he opposes efforts to expel church members."^[26]

PEACE Plan[link]

The P E A C E Plan is an initiative begun by Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California. Senior pastor Rick Warren's stated intention in launching the P E A C E (or PEACE) Plan is to involve every Christian and every church in every nation in the task of serving people in the areas of the greatest global needs. The tag-line is 'Ordinary people empowered by God making a difference together wherever they are'. P.E.A.C.E. is an acronym for the stated methodology for achieving the plan: "Promote reconciliation - Equip servant leaders - Assist the poor - Care for the sick - Educate the next generation."^[27]

Political and social views[link]

Kay and Rick Warren (left of picture) President George W. Bush, with Laura Bush at his side, with the International Medal of Peace at the Saddleback Civil Forum on Global Health in Washington, D.C.

Warren has worked to shift the evangelical movement away from an exclusive focus on traditional evangelical social issues such as abortion and same-sex marriage (regarding the latter, he called divorce a greater threat to the American family^[28]), to broader social action. Warren's five-point plan for global action, the P.E.A.C.E. Plan, calls for church-led efforts to tackle global poverty and disease, including the spread of HIV/AIDS, and to support literacy and education efforts around the world. In February 2006, he signed a statement backing a major initiative to combat global warming, thus breaking with other conservative, high-profile evangelical leaders, who had opposed such a move.^[29]

Warren's softer tone on political issues once central to U.S. evangelicals and his concern for issues more commonly associated with the political left have resulted in the characterization of Warren as one of a "new breed of evangelical leaders."^[30] But it has also been misunderstood by the media, according to Warren, as indicating a shift in position on traditional evangelical issues.^[31]

In a conversation with atheist author Sam Harris in Newsweek magazine, Warren spoke out against evolution and in favor of creationism. He also said that brutal dictators such as Mao Zedong, Joseph Stalin, and Pol Pot were all atheists, when questioned on whether religion is beneficial to society.^[32] In 2005, during the Terri Schiavo controversy, Warren stated that withholding feeding to Schiavo, a woman in a persistent vegetative state, was "not a right to die issue". He then called Michael Schiavo's decision to remove her feeding tube, "an atrocity worthy of Nazism",^[33] and while speculating about Michael Schiavo's motives, put forward the idea that Schiavo wanted Terri to die because, if she regained consciousness, she might have "something to say that he didn‘t want said." ^[34]

Two weeks before the 2008 U.S. general election, Warren issued a statement to his congregation endorsing California Proposition 8, which would amend the California Constitution to say "only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California," thereby eliminating the right of same-sex couples to marry.^[35][36] Warren's position was consistent with the official position of his church's denomination, the Southern Baptist Convention, and reflected his belief that this definition of marriage "has been supported by every single culture, and every single religion for 5,000 years."^[35][37] Warren stated that the measure was necessary because the Supreme Court of California "threw out the will of the people" in May 2008 when it found, in the In Re Marriage Cases decision, that the previous statutory ban on same-sex marriage was unconstitutional.^[35] After the measure passed, Warren's church and others were targeted by protesters.^[38]

In an interview with Beliefnet in early December, Warren again sparked controversy by appearing to equate same-sex marriages to marriages of siblings, multiple partners, and adults and minors.^[39][40][41] He later released a video message saying that he does not equate gay relationships with incest or pedophilia, and that, as he had stated during the Beliefnet interview, he opposes the redefinition of marriage.^[42]

Bibliography[link]

• The Purpose Driven Church (ISBN 0-310-20106-3)
• The Purpose Driven Life (ISBN 0-310-20571-9)
• Answers to Life's Difficult Questions (ISBN 0-9660895-2-9)
• The Power to Change Your Life (ISBN 0-9660895-1-0)
• What on Earth Am I Here For? Booklet (ISBN 0-310-26483-9)
• Personal Bible Study Methods (ISBN 0-9660895-0-2)
• The Purpose of Christmas (ISBN 978-1416559009)^[43]

See also[link]

• Southern Baptist Convention
• List of Southern Baptist Convention affiliated people
• Celebrate Recovery

References[link]

• Mair, George (2005). A Life With Purpose. New York: Berkley Books. ISBN 0-425-20174-0. 

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Rick Warren

• Rick Warren's website
• Saddleback Church website
• Rick Warren's ministry podcast
• Purpose Driven Connection
• Appearances on C-SPAN
• Rick Warren on Charlie Rose
• Rick Warren at TED Conferences
• Rick Warren at the Internet Movie Database
• Rick Warren collected news and commentary at The New York Times
• Rick Warren at the Notable Names Database
• Interview about Rick Warren with Biographer Jeffrey Sheler on ReadTheSpirit.com, January 19, 2010