Trying to fend off a $47 billion takeover, the Japanese owner of the 7-Eleven convenience store chain for the first time named an American CEO and unveiled plans for an initial public offering of the business fueled by its more than 13,000 North American stores.
Seven & I Holdings said Stephen Dacus, a former Walmart executive and a company board member since 2022, will become its new CEO.
In a statement, Seven & I said Dacus will lead the company toward an IPO that will create a separately listed company in the second half of 2026. The company will “enhance focus on its convenience store business and unlock and distribute significant value to shareholders” with the moves, according to the statement.
The shakeup also includes a deal for $5.4 billion to sell Seven & I’s so-called superstore operations and other non-7-Eleven businesses to private equity firm Bain Capital, allowing Seven & I to focus on its core convenience store business. The sale to Bain Capital is expected to close in September.
The dramatic moves come after an offer by Canada’s Couche-Tard, owner of Circle K and other convenience stores, to acquire 7-Eleven and the Tokyo-based company’s other assets for $47 billion. Known for its Slurpee and Big Gulp drinks, the convenience store chain is a ubiquitous retail brand found at high-traffic corners.
Based in Irving, Texas, 7-Eleven is the largest convenience store chain in the United States, according to the National Association of Convenience Stores.
Last month, Seven & I said it had come up emptyhanded after several months trying to line up financial partners to back a management-led buyout of the company.
The Ito family, the founders of Seven & I, needed financing to make the buyout possible. After that effort fell short, the company said it was considering the Couche-Tard offer and other strategic alternatives.
Previously, 7-Eleven had announced plans to open 500 new stores in the United States and Canada over the next two years, close more than 400 underperforming stores and improve its selection of foods and drinks.
New leader
The 7-Eleven parent company’s current CEO, Ryuichi Isaka, is stepping down after intense pressure from activist investors to make changes to the business. Dacus takes over in May.
Dacus’ resume includes executive experience at the parent company of Japanese clothing retailer Uniqlo and as the CEO of Walmart Japan. He is fluent in Japanese.
At a news conference in Tokyo, Dacus, 64, said his father was a 7-Eleven franchisee and that he worked as a 7-Eleven clerk in California as a teenager, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Seven & I said by the second half of next year, it plans to list shares of the North American 7-Eleven business on a U.S. stock exchange.
The parent company said it planned about $13 billion in share buybacks by 2030, to be funded by proceeds from the deal with Bain and cash proceeds from the IPO. It also plans progressive dividends, payments to investors the company said will be funded by cash flow from the business.
Seven & I said it will maintain a majority ownership interest in the North American 7-Eleven business after the IPO.
The IPO will create “increased financial flexibility and greater decision-making autonomy to capitalize on its market leadership as the largest convenience store chain in the attractive North American market with strong brand recognition and best-in-class digital offering in the industry,” the statement said.
Moves unveiled Thursday may not mean the end of Couche-Tard’s courtship. Dacus said leaders have continued talks with Couche-Tard “and will continue to do so” while addressing potential antitrust hurdles.
“The initiatives management has announced today are crucial steps in simplifying our group structure and unlocking shareholder value,” Dacus said in the statement. “As there is no assurance that a third-party transaction will ever become actionable or be in the best interest of the group’s shareholders and other stakeholders, the special committee fully endorses these management initiatives to unlock shareholder value at this time.”