Consistently Serving the Changing Needs of Customers for Their Convenience: 7-eleven

Always There for you

The retail industry has never seen a storm like 7-Eleven. It was initially incorporated on 4 June 1984, and soon the firm has made its mark in the retailing scene and been a prominent icon for over 28 years.  7-Eleven Malaysia is the single largest convenience store chain with more than 2,240 stores nationwide, serving over 900,000 customers daily.

The company was founded by J. C. Thompson in 1927 as The Southland Ice Company in Dallas, Texas. Started as an ice vendor, the company eventually began offering milk, bread and eggs on Sundays and evenings when grocery stores were closed. This new business idea produced satisfied customers and increased sales, spawning the precursor of the modern convenience retail concept.

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 p.m., seven days a week. The company's corporate name was changed from The Southland Corporation to 7-Eleven, Inc. in 1999.

The Strong Suit of the Company

The company is the pioneer and the largest 24-hours convenience store operator in Malaysia. Upon achieving its 1,000 mark in stores network, 7-Eleven Malaysia opened its door to local entrepreneurs through its unique franchising program in 2009. It is the first franchisor in the local market to offer existing profit-making stores to franchisees.

7-Eleven stores can be found across bustling commercial districts to serene suburban residential compounds throughout Malaysia, from petrol stations and LRT stations to shopping malls and medical institutions.

Each 7-Eleven store carries over 2,200 SKUs, including its proprietary brands such as Slurpee frozen beverages and Big Gulp fountain soft drinks. The variety of services available at 7-Eleven include the bill payment service, sale of mobile phone reload cards, IDD/STD, Touch N Go reload, internet games' starter packs, reloads via MOL Point top-up, ink cartridge refill, photocopying, fax, automated teller machine (ATM), and bulletin board for neighbourhood community notices.

In 2009, 7-Eleven introduced freshly brewed coffee and other hot beverages together with packaged fresh food and bakery for the convenience of customers looking for ready-to-eat hot food. All food items sold in 7-Eleven are certified HALAL and undergo stringent quality control to ensure tastefulness and freshness.

Being the premier neighbourhood convenience store, community building is in the heart of 7-Eleven’s corporate social responsibility framework. 7-Eleven Community Care is a non-profit entity set up to implement 7-Eleven Malaysia’s corporate social responsibility and philanthropic initiatives. The firmbelieves in giving back to the society it operates in, with a commitment to support the underprivileged groups and to sustain environmental conservation effort at the local community level across all regions.

What Makes It Different?

Overall the company has been growing rapidly due to its amazing line of products, services and special services mentioned above. The stores offer the best customer services and are known to provide fresh products and are certainly a favorite to all in their targeted region.

The Two Major Decision Makers

LENA TAN | Chairperson

She was appointed as Director and Chairman of 7-Eleven Malaysia SdnBhd on 1 July 2013 and Non-independent Non-executive director of 7-Eleven Malaysia Holdings Bhd on 21 August 2013.  Lena has close to 30 years of experience in portfolio management and business management in various roles.  She holds an MBA in Finance from the University of San Francisco and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Manitoba.

COLIN HARVEY | Chief Executive Officer

Colin was appointed as the Chief Executive Officer of 7-Eleven Malaysia on 13 of August 2018.

Prior to his appointment as CEO of 7-Eleven, he held the position of independent director of Pharmacy JSC., a Retail Pharmacy leader in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Colin has considerable retail experience in Malaysia and Indonesia where he has spent the last 13 years in various senior roles.  Colin holds a Bachelor of Commerce Degree from the University of South Africa and an MBA from Stirling University in the UK.

“We seek to understand the needs of stakeholders & the company to make the best (balanced) decisions, we  also work towards making things convenient for people to increase the effectiveness of our solutions by finding ways to resolve issues that prevent us from delivering value to those we serve and we communicate to manage people’s expectations in the most effective manner.”