7 Eleven History: The Accidental Company

Summary

The video explores the accidental origins of 7-Eleven, starting as an ice shop that evolved into a convenience store. It highlights the innovative employee who initiated the store's expansion by selling milk, eggs, and bread. The name '7-Eleven' was adopted to reflect the store's operating hours, which later transitioned to 24/7 service. The video also covers the accidental creation of the popular Slurpee and the brand's global expansion, including its acquisition by a Japanese company and its transformation into a luxury brand in some Asian markets.

Takeaways

• 🏪 7-Eleven, with nearly 10,000 stores in the US and over 60,000 worldwide, is a globally recognized brand.
• 🚀 The inception of the 7-Eleven brand was accidental, not the brainchild of a founder or entrepreneur.
• 🛒 The company's growth was significantly influenced by the actions of a dedicated employee, Johnny Jefferson Green, who introduced milk, eggs, and bread to the stores.
• ⏰ The name '7-Eleven' was adopted in 1946 to reflect the stores' operating hours from 7 AM to 11 PM, a practice that has since evolved.
• 🌐 The brand expanded globally, with a significant shift in perception, being seen as a luxury brand in some Asian countries.
• 🏠 Initially, 7-Eleven was an American company, but it is now majority-owned by the Japanese retailer Seven & I Holdings Co., Ltd.
• 🔄 The company has undergone several transformations, including a period of bankruptcy and a hostile takeover attempt in the late 1980s.
• 🏢 7-Eleven has transitioned from a centralized business model to a franchising system, which has been key to its global expansion.
• 🥤 The Slurpee, one of 7-Eleven's most popular products, was an accidental invention by an ice cream shop owner and was later acquired by 7-Eleven.
• 🌟 The brand has become a cultural icon, with stores offering a wide range of products and services beyond the traditional convenience store offerings.

Q & A

How many convenience stores does 7-Eleven have in the US and worldwide?

7-Eleven has close to 10,000 convenience stores in the US and over 60,000 around the world.

What is the origin of the 7-Eleven brand name?

The 7-Eleven brand name originated from the operating hours of their convenience stores, which were initially open from 7:00 AM to 11:00 PM.

Who is credited with the idea of selling items like milk, eggs, and bread at the Southland Ice Company shops?

The idea of selling items like milk, eggs, and bread at Southland Ice Company shops is credited to an employee known as 'Uncle Johnny' Jefferson Greene.

How did the Southland Ice Company transition from selling ice to operating convenience stores?

The Southland Ice Company transitioned to operating convenience stores by noticing the success of selling milk, eggs, bread, and other items during times when grocery stores were closed, leading to the replication of this model in other ice shops.

What was the significance of the totem pole in the branding of the Southland Ice Company shops?

The totem pole became a significant marketing item after a Southland Ice Company associate brought one back from Alaska. It attracted customers, leading the company to adopt the name 'Totem Stores' and later use totem poles as a branding element.

Why did Southland Ice Company change its brand name to 7-Eleven in 1946?

Southland Ice Company changed its brand name to 7-Eleven in 1946 to reflect the new operating hours of their stores, which were from 7:00 AM to 11:00 PM.

When did 7-Eleven stores begin to operate 24/7, and what was the catalyst for this change?

7-Eleven stores began to operate 24/7 in 1963, with the catalyst being a visit from the University of Texas football team who stayed in the store until the next morning, leading to the decision to keep the store open round the clock.

How did the Slurpee soft drink become part of 7-Eleven's product offerings?

The Slurpee soft drink became part of 7-Eleven's offerings after Omar Knedley, the owner of a chain of ice cream shops, discovered the slushy drink by accident when his soda fountain broke down. His business was later acquired by 7-Eleven, and the drink was branded and marketed as Slurpee.

What is the business model of 7-Eleven in terms of store ownership and management?

7-Eleven's business model includes both company-owned and franchised stores. The company has expanded through building new locations and acquiring existing retail stores, and since the 1950s, it has adopted a franchising system where local businesses operate under the 7-Eleven brand.

How did 7-Eleven end up with majority ownership by a Japanese company?

7-Eleven ended up with majority ownership by a Japanese company, the Ito-Yokado Corporation, after facing financial difficulties in the late 1980s and early 1990s, which led to a hostile takeover attempt and subsequent bankruptcy. The Japanese company bought 70% of the shares during this period.

How has the perception and service of 7-Eleven stores changed in different countries, particularly in Asia?

In countries where 7-Eleven has expanded, especially in Asia, the brand is often perceived as more upscale, with stores located in affluent areas and offering services that include social settings and live entertainment, differing from the original Quickstop store concept.

Outlines

00:00

🏪 The Accidental Beginnings of 7-Eleven

The first paragraph introduces the 7-Eleven brand, highlighting its global presence with nearly 10,000 stores in the US and over 60,000 worldwide. It discusses the accidental origins of the brand, contrasting it with other major brands like Microsoft, Apple, and Amazon, which were founded by entrepreneurs with a clear vision. The story begins in the 1920s with the Southland Ice Company in Dallas, Texas, which identified a need for ice delivery to preserve perishables in homes lacking electricity and refrigerators. An employee, Johnny Jefferson Greene, noticed customers' need for milk, eggs, and bread when grocery stores were closed, leading to the sale of these items in the ice shops. This innovation led to a significant increase in revenue, prompting the company to expand this model to other locations.

05:02

🕒 The Evolution of 7-Eleven's Brand and Services

The second paragraph delves into the evolution of the 7-Eleven brand, starting with its adoption of the 'Totem' name after a totem pole was used as a marketing tool. The name '7-Eleven' was adopted in 1946, reflecting the stores' operating hours from 7 AM to 11 PM, although many stores later transitioned to 24/7 operation. The story of the Slurpee, a popular product, is also highlighted, which was invented by an ice cream shop owner and later integrated into 7-Eleven's offerings. The paragraph also covers the company's business model, which started as a centralized organization and later adopted franchising, allowing for global expansion. It also mentions the acquisition of existing retail stores, such as Speedy Mart, as part of 7-Eleven's growth strategy.

10:03

🌐 Global Expansion and Cultural Shifts of 7-Eleven

The third paragraph discusses the global expansion of 7-Eleven and the cultural shifts associated with the brand in different markets. It explains how the company, initially an American entity, became majority-owned by the Japanese retailer Ito-Yokado through 7-Eleven Japan. The narrative includes the challenges faced by 7-Eleven in the late 1980s, including a hostile takeover attempt and subsequent bankruptcy, which led to the Japanese investment. The paragraph also contrasts the brand's perception in the US, where it is seen as a convenience store for the average person, with its image in Asia, where it is often positioned as a luxury brand with stores in upscale areas and offering a more social shopping experience.

Keywords

💡7-eleven

7-eleven is a globally recognized brand of convenience stores, known for its wide range of products and services. In the video, it is highlighted as an accidental creation, not by a founder but by an employee who saw a business opportunity. The brand's history is traced back to the 1920s, starting as an ice shop and evolving into the convenience store chain it is today. The name '7-eleven' itself is significant, indicating the original operating hours of the stores, from 7 AM to 11 PM.

💡Accidental Creation

The term 'Accidental Creation' refers to the unintentional or unexpected origin of something, often leading to successful outcomes. In the context of the video, 7-eleven's inception is described as an accident, as it was not the founder but an employee, Johnny Jefferson Greene, who initiated the idea of selling milk, eggs, and bread at the ice shop when other grocery stores were closed.

💡Southland Ice Company

Southland Ice Company was the precursor to 7-eleven, initially established to sell ice blocks for preserving perishable goods. The video explains how this company, in response to the growing access to electricity and refrigerators, pivoted to selling convenience items, eventually leading to the birth of the 7-eleven brand.

💡Totem Stores

Totem Stores was a brand name adopted by Southland Ice Company after a totem pole was used as a marketing item outside their shops, attracting customers. This name was used for about 20 years before the company rebranded to 7-eleven. The video highlights this as another example of an accidental step in the company's growth path.

💡24/7 Operation

The concept of '24/7 Operation' refers to businesses that operate continuously, being open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The video narrates how 7-eleven transitioned from its original operating hours to a 24/7 model in 1963, partly due to a celebratory visit by the University of Texas football team, which led to other stores following suit.

💡Slurpee

Slurpee is a popular slushy soft drink sold at 7-eleven stores. The video recounts how the Slurpee was accidentally created by Omar Knedlik, who patented the drink after his soda fountain broke down, leading to a slushy consistency that customers loved. The product became a staple of 7-eleven and has been a significant contributor to the brand's success.

💡Franchising System

A 'Franchising System' is a business model where a company allows individuals or other businesses to operate under its brand using a standardized format. The video explains that 7-eleven adopted this model in the 1950s, which has been instrumental in its global expansion, allowing local entrepreneurs to operate 7-eleven stores while maintaining the brand's identity.

💡Global Expansion

Global Expansion refers to the process of a company extending its operations to various countries around the world. The video discusses how 7-eleven has grown from its American roots to become a global brand with a presence in over 20 countries, adapting to local markets and consumer preferences.

💡ITOCHU

ITOCHU is a Japanese conglomerate that acquired a majority stake in 7-eleven during the company's financial difficulties in the late 20th century. The video outlines this acquisition as a turning point, leading to a shift in 7-eleven's ownership structure and contributing to its global strategy.

💡Cultural Shift

Cultural Shift denotes changes in the way a brand or product is perceived or positioned in different cultural contexts. The video highlights how 7-eleven, originally a Quickstop store in the US, is perceived as a luxury brand in some Asian countries, with stores located in upscale areas and offering a different shopping experience, including social settings with live bands.

Highlights

7-Eleven has nearly 10,000 stores in the US and over 60,000 worldwide.

The 7-Eleven brand's creation was accidental and not planned.

The company's growth involved at least three other accidental but positive steps.

7-Eleven is one of the few major brands with origins traceable to a dedicated employee's actions.

In the 1920s, ice sales were a significant business due to limited electricity and refrigerators.

Southland Ice Company, a merger of ice shops, identified a need for milk, eggs, and bread outside regular store hours.

The success of selling milk, eggs, and bread led to the replication of this model in other ice shops.

The new venture of selling additional items generated more revenue than ice blocks.

The brand name 'Totem Stores' was adopted after a totem post was used as a marketing item.

7-Eleven changed its name in 1946 to reflect the operating hours of its convenience stores.

In 1963, many 7-Eleven stores began operating 24/7, a significant shift from their original hours.

The Slurpee soft drink was accidentally created and later became one of 7-Eleven's most popular products.

7-Eleven has expanded its product range to include almost anything, from auto parts to hot meals.

The company initially operated as a centralized organization but later adopted a franchising system.

7-Eleven was acquired by the Japanese retailer Seven & I Holdings Co., Ltd., changing its ownership structure.

The brand's perception varies globally, being seen as a luxury brand in some Asian countries.

7-Eleven has evolved from a Quickstop store to a global presence in over 20 countries.

Transcripts

with close to 10,000 convenience stores

in the US and over 60,000 around the

world you've probably been to a 7-eleven

location for coffee

gasoline refill or a cuppa they're very

much loved slushy soft drink Slurpee but

did you know that the 7-eleven brand

coming into being was an accident and

not actually planned and there are at

least three other similarly accidental

but positive steps on the growth path of

the company stay with me to find out

also did you know that 7-eleven is one

of the few major brands whose origins

can be traced back to the actions of a

creative and dedicated employee in

today's episode of companies explained

we uncover the origins of this company

that many describe as the originator of

Kwik Stop department store concept we

take you through its history to see how

it became one of the most recognizable

features in the u.s. shopping culture

and that of other countries around the

world but before we get to it I humbly

request that you take a moment and

subscribe to our Channel you don't want

to miss any of our informative and

exciting videos about famous brands and

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we appreciate you choosing to watch our

video thanks now back to today's pick

the history of many major brands is

often written with the founder

entrepreneur being the one who conceived

the idea think Microsoft Apple Facebook

or Amazon this is not the case though

with 7-eleven the brand came into being

in what can be described as an accident

the founder or let's say the

entrepreneur who oversaw its growth in

the early days didn't come up with the

idea

instead it's one of his employees who

saw a business opportunity and acted on

it now let's get some background to this

story in the 1920s not many Americans

had access to electricity it was only

those who lived in the affluent

neighborhoods of major cities who did

and also it was still early days

for the refrigerator so even among those

who had access to electricity not many

had a refrigerator at home to keep their

perishables fresh but that does not mean

people did not preserve perishables

there was a way to do it and that was to

use a block of ice put next to whatever

needed to be preserved so if for example

you wanted the meat to last three days

or a week you had to pack it together

with ice do you know what this way of

preserving food did it created a demand

for ice which fortunately could be

bought from ice shops nearby in the city

of Dallas Texas selling ice was a big

business as was the case around the

country perhaps to increase efficiency

and cut costs in 1927 several ice shops

in the city merged to form Southland

ice company given the need to quickly

move the ice from the storage at the

store to the consumer homes the ice

doors were mostly closed - or in

residential areas one employee of the

Southland ice company who's been

identified as uncle Johnny

Jefferson Greene identified a need in

the customers he was serving they needed

items like milk eggs and bread when the

grocery stores around were closed he

talked to his employer one Josie

Thompson jr. about the possibility of

selling milk eggs bread and other items

at the ice shop with permission from his

employer uncle Johnny stopped these

items and soon people were buying

especially during the weekends and

holidays when most of the shops around

were closed noticing the success

Josie Thompson jr. decided to replicate

this enterprise in the other eye shops

around town and each was doing well

beyond expectations

soon business was booming and the new

venture was generating more revenue than

ice blocks and guess what this turned

out to be the survival path for

Southland ice company in the following

few years more Americans had access to

both electricity and refrigerators and

did not need to buy ice blocks to

preserve their perishables if ice blocks

remained their primary product they

would most likely have closed down

sooner or later then another accident

happened while traveling in Alaska an

associate of Josie Thompson

Jr by the name of Jenna Lyra came across

totems monumental carvings on large

poles that are part of the belief system

of the Alaskan indigenous people she

bought one of these totem posts and when

she reached home they set it up outside

the Southland ice company shops the

totem post became a magnet many locals

came to shop at the stool because they

wanted to have a look at it

noticing that the totem was an apt

marketing item the management of

Southland ice company went back to

Alaska I bought one for each of their

shops and that is how the business

acquired the brand name totem stores

first customers started referring to the

stores as totem shops and then the

company adopted the name and made it

their brand name and it stuck with them

for close to 20 years then why did they

change to 7-eleven in 1946 Southland ice

company decided to drop totem and take a

new brand name they settled on 7-eleven

why it described the operating hours of

their convenience stores opening at 7:00

in the morning and closing at 11 in the

evening this tradition that has the

source of their name has however changed

in 1963 many 7-eleven stores began to be

open 24/7 the story goes that one

evening in 1963 the University of Texas

football team coming from a tournament

decided to enter into a local 7-eleven

store for a celebratory evening they

didn't leave until the next morning the

next evening other students came by and

overstayed this falls the management to

allow the store to be open 24/7 soon

other 7-eleven stores followed suit how

true the story is we can't tell and if

you noticed this is another of 7-eleven

s accidental development steps it could

also be argued that the brand just

joined a trend at the time in the 1960s

many businesses especially in the big

cities were finding it necessary to open

24-7 given the availability of customers

to serve there is one more accidental

development regarding 7-eleven s growth

and it has to do with one of their most

popular products the Slurpee soft drink

however this did not say place within

the company it happened outside the

company before the drink became part of

the company staples Omar asked Nedley

was the owner of a chain of ice cream

shops in the Dallas area one day his

soda fountain broke down and he was

forced to put the drink in a freezer to

keep it fresh for the customers when he

got it out it was slushy but the

customers loved it more that way a light

bulb went off he could produce the drink

in this form for his customers he began

to offer the drink as a new item on the

menu he also patented it in the 1960s

his business became part of 7-eleven and

the new product was branded and marketed

as Slurpee 7-eleven has disclosed that

it sells about fourteen million cups of

Slurpees each month and since the

product was launched in 1966 over 7.2

billion Slurpees have been sold but it's

only one among many products over the

years the number of products sold in

7-eleven convenience stores has steadily

grown today you can buy almost anything

at a 7-eleven store car auto parts

gasoline coffee burgers pizzas

refreshments hot meals shoes and more

let's turn our attention to the business

model of 7-eleven at its inception the

Southland company which was behind totem

and later 7-eleven was run as a

centralized organization each store was

owned and managed from the main office

in Dallas Texas over the years the

company expanded through the building of

new locations but also through the

acquisition of existing Quickstop retail

stores an example of an existing company

that 7-eleven acquired was speedy Mart

which had hundreds of locations around

the country in the 1950s when it was

acquired the tradition of acquiring

existing businesses as a growth strategy

has continued to date in January 2018

7-eleven acquired approximately 1030

convenience stores in 17 US states that

used to be owned by Sonico this is after

the latter chose to focus on retail fuel

outlets

as part of the deal 7-eleven was to

surrender 26 Rito few outlets of its own

to sonico acquisitions have worked well

for 7-eleven as a way to acquire larger

market share but also to gain industry

knowledge and experience but 7-eleven no

longer runs as a centralized business in

the 50s the company adopted a

franchising system this is the model

where local businesses and entrepreneurs

enter into contractual relationships

with the company so that they use the

7-eleven trademark and brand in recent

years franchises have formed a more

significant percentage of the brand size

including revenue through franchising

7-eleven has managed to expand to many

countries around the globe ownership

7-eleven was an American company the

majority ownership of the company was

American until the 1990s 70% of the

company is now owned by the it ohya

Carter company a japanese retailer

through 7-eleven japan but how did an

American company end up being owned by a

Japanese company during the Great

Depression in the 1930s 7-eleven managed

to survive by closing some of its

operations and selling some parts of its

businesses to pay off debtors this

worked well and the company came through

stronger and more robust the company

found itself in a similar but not the

same situation in the late 1980s in 1987

a Canadian financier named Samuel bells

burg threatened to carry out a hostile

takeover at the company the Thompson

family which was still in control of the

company decided to buy him out they

borrowed a lot of money to achieve this

in addition to selling a lot of company

assets while they succeeded at beating

Samuel bells burg the recovery strategy

did not work as well as it did during

the Great Depression the debt

accumulated from the buyout event ended

up becoming toxic and the company had to

file for bankruptcy in 1990 it is at

this weak point that the Japanese

company came in and bought 70 percent of

the shares in Southland company

finally in 1999 Southland Corp the

entity that have been behind 7-eleven

changed its name to 7-eleven

incorporated we can now say that

7-eleven is more global than American it

has a presence in more than 20 countries

around the world with this there's been

a cultural shift and in particular how

the brand stores are placed at the

market

when 7-eleven was launched it was a

Quickstop store for the ordinary person

on the street and this is how is largely

remained to Americans to date but in the

countries where the brand has expanded

too especially in countries in Asia such

as Thailand China Taiwan and Indonesia

the brand is treated as being a luxury

brand to some extent the locations are

mostly in upscale areas of town and the

people you're most likely to run into

are the affluent type the service is

also different some 7-eleven locations

in some of these countries are social

settings complete with stages for live

bands the 7-elevens of the 1950s are

definitely not the 7-elevens of today we

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