The parent company of 7-Eleven is planning to open 500 new convenience stores throughout the United States and Canada over the next two years as it looks to boost sales.
The move by Japan-based Seven & I Holdings is part of the company's wider strategy to grow to 100,000 stores in 30 countries and regions by 2030, Reuters reported. The plans come as an executive and large shareholder of Seven & I Holdings is leading an offer to take the company private amid a competing bid from Laval, Quebec-based Alimentation Couche-Tard, the owner of the rival convenience store chain Circle K.
The first 125 7-Eleven locations in North America are expected to open next year and feature the company's new format, which focuses on in-store restaurants and premium items, according to Nation's Restaurant News.
Convenience stores in the U.S. and Canada are rapidly expanding, opening new locations and acquiring competitors. Stores have been upgrading food and beverage options in anticipation of the potential revenue decline from the shift to electric vehicles.
The rollout comes at the same time that Seven & I Holdings is planning to close more than 400 underperforming locations in North America. A list of locations has not been disclosed and representatives for Seven & I Holdings did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Couche-Tard initially offered $39 billion in September for Seven & I Holdings, which the company rejected, saying at the time that the offer was "grossly undervalued." An alternative presented by Ito-Kogyo, a separate company linked to Seven & I Holdings' executive Junro Ito, offered $58 billion last month to take the company private.
Seven & I Holdings announced in November it had formed a special committee to consider the offers from Couche-Tard and Ito-Kogyo.