7-Eleven is the world’s largest chain of stores. Even larger than McDonald’s! Its stores are located in eighteen countries, with its largest markets being Japan, the United States, Taiwan, and Thailand. , it operates franchises or more than 35,200 stores. They serve seven million customers everyday.
The company in 1927 in Dallas, Texas, USA, when an of Southland Ice Company, Joe C. Thompson, started selling milk, eggs and bread from an ice shop. Although there were already some small stores in the area, Thompson, that selling basic items such as bread and milk the need for people to travel longer to grocery stores. Thompson bought the Southland Ice Company and it into the Southland Corporation which soon opened several locations in the Dallas area. , these stores were open from 7a.m. to 11p.m. while most stores opened later and closed much earlier. The company began to use the 7-Eleven name in 1946, and by 1952, had its 100th store. In 1963, 7-Eleven with a 24-hour schedule. Aggressive marketing and careful attention to consumer trends the company to growth throughout the 70’s and mid 80’s.
Despite stiff competition from similar , 7-Eleven remains at the top the convenience store market. In 2008, after placing in the top 10 a 16 times, the company was named the number one by Entrepreneur Magazine’s 500, beating out Subway who had held the number one for 15 years.