Why 7-Eleven Is a National Treasure in Japan

 

Why 7-Eleven Is a National Treasure in Japan

Convenience stores are a part of the country’s culture, meaning that the foreign buyout bid for the Japanese-owned chain could be a hard sell.

美國東部時間 2024 年 8 月 24 日上午 12:00

在日本，便利商店以乾淨、明亮著稱，裡面擺滿了新鮮實惠的便當、饅頭和燉菜，名廚安東尼·布爾登曾稱它們為「他無法放棄的惡習」。

對許多居民來說，超過 55,000 家充滿歡樂氣氛的商店（稱為 konbini）是日常生活中不可或缺的一部分，每天都有數百萬人湧入商店取貨、寄包裹和支付帳單。

Japan’s largest convenience store chain, 7-Eleven, is also its most famous.Credit...Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters

By Kiuko Notoya and River Akira Davis

Reporting from 7-Eleven stores in Japan, including the original one in east Tokyo

Aug. 24, 2024, 12:00 a.m. ET

In Japan, convenience stores are celebrated. Clean and bright, they are stocked with fresh and affordable lunchboxes, steamed buns and stews in the winter. The celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain once called them “the one vice” he couldn’t give up.

For many residents, the more than 55,000 cheerful, jingle-filled stores, known as konbini, are an indispensable part of daily life. Millions flock to the stores daily to pick up food, send packages and pay bills.