A year after concluding its $21 billion acquisition of rival Speedway, convenience store company 7-Eleven has slashed about 880 corporate roles in the United States.
This change coincides with U.S. firms struggling with inflation almost everywhere, from rent to petrol, according to CNBC’s report on Thursday (July 21). Many businesses have reduced employment or gone through rounds of layoffs in an effort to reduce costs.
According to the report, ValueAct Capital, an investment firm, has put pressure on 7-Eleven, owned by Japanese retail behemoth Seven & I Holdings, to consider new business models. In addition, the company has been grappling with increasing gas prices, which have led to some customers filling up their cars less frequently.
“As with any merger, our integration approach includes assessing our combined organization structure,” a 7-Eleven spokesperson told CNBC in an emailed statement. “The review was slowed by Covid-19 but is now complete, and we are finalizing the go-forward organization structure.”
Additionally, according to that source, field support positions as well as some positions at the company’s Irving, Texas, and Enon, Ohio, support centres were affected by the layoffs.
In order to increase its footprint in the United States, notably in the Midwest and on the East Coast, 7-Eleven purchased Speedway. Although the Federal Trade Commission claimed that the acquisition of the Speedway subsidiary from Marathon violated federal antitrust laws, 7-Eleven was forced to liquidate more than 200 retail locations as a result.
Recently, PYMNTS reported that 7-Eleven had joined with the Brands with Heart programme and has been working with emerging brands to provide them with opportunities to flourish.
Brands with Heart reportedly gives brands a way to introduce their products inside 7-Eleven locations, along with Speedway and Stripes, around the country. The program works with companies creating snacks, beverages, confections and healthier items at varying stages of development.
