Convenience Store

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A convenience store is a small store or shop. They are often located alongside busy roads, or at Gas station. This can take the form of gas stations supplementing their income with retail outlets, or convenience stores adding gas to the list of goods that they offer. Train stations also often have convenience stores. They are also frequently located in densely-populated urban neighborhoods.

, Japan

Goods on offer Sometimes abbreviated to c-store, various types exist, for example: liquor stores (off-licences – offies), mini-markets (mini-marts) or party stores. Typically junk food (candy, ice-cream, soft drinks), lottery tickets, newspapers and magazines are sold. Unless the outlet is a liquor store, the range of alcohol beverages is likely to be limited (i.e. beer and wine) or non-existent. Many stores carry cigarettes and other tobacco products. Varying degrees of food and grocery supplies are usually available, from household products, to prepackaged foods like sandwiches and frozen burrito (food)s. Automobile-related items such as motor oil, maps and car kits may be sold. Often toiletries and other hygiene products are stocked, as well as feminine hygiene and contraception. Some of these stores also offer money orders and wire transfer services.

The most common type of foods offered in convenience stores are breakfast sandwiches and other breakfast food. Throughout Europe convenience stores now sell fresh bread (or similar). A process of freezing part-baked bread allows easy shipment (often from France) and baking in-store. Some stores have a delicatessen counter, offering custom-made sandwiches and baguettes. Some stores have racks offering fresh delivered or baked doughnuts from local doughnut shops. Some stores have a self-service microwave oven for heating purchased food – in Hong Kong, convenience stores even provide lunch and dinner.

In the USA, some fast food chains like Chick-fil-a offer a counter in convenience stores. Instead of cooking food in the store, these counters offer a limited menu of items delivered several times a day from a local branch of the restaurant.

Convenience stores may be combined with other services, such as a train station ticket counter or a post office counter.

Differences from supermarkets Although larger, newer convenience stores have quite a broad range of items, the selection is still limited compared to supermarkets, and in many stores only 1 or 2 choices are available.

Prices in a convenience store are typically higher than at a supermarket, mass merchandise store, or auto supply store (with the exception of the goods such as milk, soda and fuel in which convenience stores traditionally do high volume and sometimes use as loss leaders).

In the United States, the stores will sometimes be the only stores and services near an interstate highway exit where drivers can buy any kind of food or drink for miles. Most of the profit margin from these stores comes from beer, liquor, and cigarettes. Although those three categories themselves usually yield lower margins per item, the amount of sales in these categories generally makes up for it. Profits per item are much higher on deli items (bags of ice, chicken, etc), but sales are generally lower.

In some countries most convenience stores have longer shopping hours, some being open 24 hours.

Convenience stores by country Convenience stores in Canada Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc., which operates Couche-Tard, Provi-Soir, Dépanneur 7, Mac's Convenience Stores and Beckers Milk, is the largest convenience store chain in Canada. Another large chain is Quickie Mart, which predates the "Kwik-E-Mart" featured on The Simpsons.

The world's largest convenience retailer, 7-Eleven, has about 500 locations from British Columbia to Ontario. Worldwide, the highest number of the chain's famous Slurpee beverages are sold in Winnipeg, Manitoba; the city is known as the "Slurpee Capital of the World".

Marketing itself as "more than just a convenience store," there are over 150 Hasty Market locations throughout Ontario.

Convenience stores are also commonly referred to as "corner stores" or "variety stores" in some regions of Canada. In the mostly French-speaking province of Quebec, a convenience store is known as a "dépanneur," or "dep" for short. "Dépanneur" means literally "one who gets you out of a jam".

Convenience stores in Japan Although originated in the United States, convenience stores developed tremendously in Japan. 7-Eleven Japan, while struggling to localize their service in the 1970s to 1980s, evolved its Point of sale-based business. Ultimately, Seven & I Holdings Co., the parent company of 7-Eleven Japan, acquired 7-Eleven (US) from Southland Corporation in 1991. Japanese-styled convenience stores called konbini (:ja:コンビニ) also heavily influenced those stores in other Asian nations, such as Taiwan, Thailand, South Korea, and China.

Convenience stores rely heavily on the Point of sale. Customers' ages, gender, as well as tomorrow's weather forecast, are important data. All orders are made on-line. As their store sizes are limited, they have to be very careful in choosing what brands to sell.

In many cases, several same-chained stores exist in neighboring areas. This strategy, called dominant, makes distribution to each store cheaper. (:ja:ドミナント政策) It also makes multiple distributions per a day possible. Generally, foods are delivered to each store two to five times a day from factories. Since products are delivered as needed, stores do not need large stock areas.

As of 2005, there are 43,667 convenience stores in Japan. Among them, 7-Eleven leads the market with 11,310 stores, followed by Lawson (store) and FamilyMart.

Items sold in Japanese convenience stores include:

Foods, such as side dishes, bento (including dishes such as spaghetti or Japanese curry), onigiri, frozen foods, oden, nikuman, bread, soft drinks, mineral water, milk, energy drinks, snack foods, candy with toys, gum, instant noodles, instant coffee, ice cream, seasonings, cat food, and dog food.
Sundries, such as cosmetics, soap, shampoo, undergarments, umbrellas, dry cells, light bulbs, nail clippers, tissue paper, toilet paper, feminine hygiene products, and condoms.
Office supplies, such as official postcards, postage stamps, stamp duty, and stationery.
Entertainment products, such as CDs, DVDs, video games, capsuled toys, consumer fireworks (available in the summer), magazines (including manga), newspapers, or books.
Courier, or mail.
Photocopying, or fax service.
automated teller machines for various banks.
Utility charges, such as telephone, electricity, gas, water, NHK fee, tax, universal health care, national pension, and vehicle insurance for motorcycles.

Some stores also sell:

Alcoholic beverages, tobacco, medicine, contact lens cleaner, or charging service for electronic money.
Tickets, such as for concerts, movies, amusement park, airlines, or buses.
ATM services for credit card or consumer finance.

Items not sold in most Japanese convenience stores include:

Slurpees, Lottery tickets, Car supplies, and Gasoline.

===Convenience stores in Singapore===Major convenience stores in Singapore are 7-Eleven owned by Dairy Farm International Holdings and Cheers (convenience store) owned by NTUC Fairprice. "Price Waterhouse Coopers. (2005/2006). Singapore. From Beijing to Budapest: Winning Brands, Winning Formats, 4, p. 189." Figures from the Singapore Department of Statistics showed that there are 338 7-Eleven stores and 91 Cheers outlets in 2004. "Upstart Mini-marts. (2006, October 22). The Sunday Times. " Other convenience stores such as Myshop and One Plus appeared in 1983. Myshop belongs to a Japanese company, and One Plus belongs to Emporium Holdings. "Convenience Stores Pose Threat to Supermarkets. (1984, March 23). The Business Times."

Various reasons unique to Singapore have been given for the great popularity of convenience stores there. Convenience stores sell a wide range of imported goods, whereas minimarts and provision shops sell local products with a limited range of non-Asian products. "Price Waterhouse Coopers. (2005/2006). Singapore. From Beijing to Budapest: Winning Brands, Winning Formats, 4, p. 189." Convenience stores are situated within housing estates thus reducing consumers’ traveling time. Most families in Singapore are dual-income families. "Loh, Choon-Min James. (1988). The Adoption of A Retailing Innovation in A Newly Industrialising Country: The Modernisation of Local Provision Shops in Singapore. United Kingdom: The British Library, p. 61." Since both the husband and wife are working, there is greater need for convenience in shopping for daily necessities. The 24 hour opening policy allows convenience stores to reach out to a larger group of consumers. Firstly, the policy caters to the shopping needs of consumers who work shifts or have irregular working hours. "Can 24-hr marts thrive in S'pore?. (2005, May 15). The Straits Times." Secondly, the policy caters to the increasing number of Singaporeans who are keeping late nights. It was reported that 54% of Singaporeans stayed up past midnight in an economic review by Price Waterhouse Coopers (PWC) in 2005. "Price Waterhouse Coopers. (2005/2006). Singapore. From Beijing to Budapest: Winning Brands, Winning Formats, 4, p. 193."

7-Eleven 7-Eleven began the trend of convenience stores in Singapore when it opened its first store in 1982 by Jardine Matheson Group, under a franchise agreement with Southland Corporation of the United States. "The Business Times reports that in Singapore chains of mini-markets (or convenience stores) have rapidly sprung up to fill the gap between the large supermarkets and the neighbourhood stores (or provision shops). (1984, November 15). Business Times Singapore." Dairy Farm International Holdings acquired the chain from Jardine Matheson Group in 1989. "Dairy Farm reviewing 7-Eleven businesses in Singapore and Malaysia. (1989, April 12). Business Times Singapore."

The number of 7-Eleven outlets continued to increase in 1984 while other chains were having difficulty in expanding. One Plus was unable to expand due to the shortage of good sites. The original owners of the Myshop franchise, which had seven outlets, sold out to one of its suppliers due to a lack of demand. "The Business Times reports that in Singapore chains of mini-markets (or convenience stores) have rapidly sprung up to fill the gap between the large supermarkets and the neighbourhood stores (or provision shops). (1984, November 15). Business Times Singapore."

However, in 1985, 7-Eleven faced difficulty in finding favourable locations and failed to meet its one-store-a-month target. The situation improved in 1986 with a new Housing Development Board (HDB) tendering system, which allowed 7-Eleven to secure shops without having to bid too high a price. "The 7-Eleven convenience store chain in Singapore, the franchise of which is held by Jardine Matheson, should nearly double its expected rate of opening one new store each month by the end of the year. (1986, November 5). Business Times Singapore."

7-Eleven stores are open twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, including Sundays and public holidays. "Loh, Choon-Min James. (1988). The Adoption of A Retailing Innovation in A Newly Industrialising Country: The Modernisation of Local Provision Shops in Singapore. United Kingdom: The British Library, p. 34." This 24/7 policy was seen as the reason that gave 7-Eleven its edge over its competitors.

In 1990, there was a rise in the number of shop thefts in 7-Eleven. The shoplifters were usually teenagers who stole small items such as chocolates, cigarettes and beer. "Convenience stores hit regularly by 'grabbers’. (1990, May 4). The Straits Times." In response to the increase in the number of thefts, 7-Eleven stepped up security measures, which successfully lowered the crime rate by 60% "Chain stores' anti-crime moves pay off with 60% drop in crime rate. (1991, December 1). The Straits Times."

Cheers Cheers (convenience store) is owned by local corporation NTUC Fairprice, started in 1999. "NTUC Link Pte. Ltd. (2005). Cheers. . Available: http://www.linkpoints.com.sg/linkpoints/merchants/merchant_subdetail.aspx?id=73" Cheers has adopted 7-Eleven’s 24/7 model and took similar security measures to prevent cases of shop lifting. Convenience store owners seeking franchising seem to prefer Cheers over 7-Eleven, probably due to its cheaper franchise fee. "7-Eleven: Growing and getting closer to you. (2004, June 19). The Straits Times."

Convenience stores in Taiwan outlet density in the world, it is not an unusual scene seeing two 7-Eleven shops stand face to face in a same intersection in Taiwan. The distance between them might be less than 50 meters.Boasting 8,058 convenience stores in an area of 35,980 km² and a population of 22.9 million, Taiwan has Asia Pacific’s and perhaps the world’s highest density of convenience stores per person: one store per 2,800 people or .000357 stores per person (2005 ACNielsen ShopperTrends). With 4,385 7-Eleven stores, Taiwan also has the world’s highest density of 7-Elevens per person: one store per 6,200 people or .000161 stores per person (International Licensing page of 7-Eleven website). In Taipei, it is not unusual to see two 7-Elevens across the street or several of them within a few hundreds of meters of each other.

Because they are found everywhere, convenience stores in Taiwan provide services on behalf of financial institutions or government agencies such as collection of city parking fees, utility bills, traffic violation fines, and credit card payments. Eighty percent of urban household shoppers in Taiwan visit a convenience store each week (2005 ACNielsen ShopperTrends).

United States The first chain convenience store in the United States was opened in Dallas, Texas in 1927 by the Southland Ice Company, which eventually became 7-Eleven. Since that time many different convenience store brands have developed, and their stores may either be corporation-owned or franchising. The items offered for sale tend to be similar despite store brand, and almost always include milk, bread, soft drinks, cigarettes, phone cards, coffee, slushs, candy bars, Twinkies, slim jim, hot dogs, ice cream, candy, chewing gum, chips, pretzels, popcorn, beef jerky, doughnuts, maps, magazines, newspapers, small toys, car supplies, feminine hygiene products, cat food, dog food, and toilet paper. Other less common items include sandwiches, pizza, and frozen foods. Nearly all convenience stores also have an automated teller machine (ATM), though other bankings services are usually not available. State lottery tickets are also available at these stores.

Some convenience stores in the United States also sell gasoline. Policies regarding the sale of adult magazines vary, but generally larger chains (such as 7-Eleven and Casey's General Stores) do not sell these items, while smaller independent stores may do so. One notable exception to this "rule" is fast-growing regional chain Sheetz, which does sell some soft-core pornography material such as Playboy (including its various "special" issues), Penthouse (magazine), and Playgirl.

Because the laws regarding the sale of alcoholic beverages vary from state to state in the United States, the availability of beer, wine, and liquor varies greatly. For example, while convenience stores in Alaska, Pennsylvania and New Jersey cannot sell any kind of alcohol at all, stores in Nevada and California may sell alcoholic beverages of any sort, while stores in Virginia, Washington, or Oregon can sell beer and wine, but not liquor.

American convenience stores are often a direct target of armed robbery. In some areas of the United States, it is not uncommon for clerks to work behind a bulletproof glass window, even during daylight hours. The main dangers are that almost all convenience stores have only one person working the night shift, most of the transactions are in cash, and easily resold merchandise, such as liquor, lottery tickets and cigarettes are on the premises. Most convenience stores have a cash drop slot into a time-delay safe so clerks may limit the amount of cash on hand. Many have installed security cameras to help prevent robberies and shoplifting.

Because of their vulnerability to crime, nearly all convenience stores have a friendly relationship with the local police. Some even provide a small police substation in the store, and traditionally provide free coffee to police officers. Police officers often patrol the parking lot of a convenience store, especially after the closing time of bars to apprehend Drunkenness.

Regional names Regional differences in terms exist.

In certain parts of the Midwest, especially Michigan, locals prefer to use the term party store. The term party store is said to come from post prohibition times when you could buy liquor or beer again, hence to throw a party.

In New York City they are almost always referred to as bodegas, a Spanish word for "storehouse". In New York bodegas tend to carry fewer healthy foods in comparison to their neighborhood's socioeconomic level .

In the South, these are often simply referred to as "stores". If one were to say "I'm going to the store", it would automatically be assumed that the speaker meant a convenience store.

In the San Antonio region of Texas, a convenience store is commonly referred to as an "icehouse."

Similar concepts Convenience stores to some extent replaced the old-fashioned general store. They are similar but not identical to Australian milk bars. In Britain, corner shops in towns and village shops in the countryside served similar purposes and were the precursors to the modern European convenience store (e.g. SPAR). In the Canada province of Quebec, dépanneurs are often family-owned neighbourhood shops that serve similar purposes.

Truck stops, also known as "travel centers" combine a shop offering similar goods to a convenience store with amenities for truck driver of Semi-trailer trucks. This may include fast food restaurants, showers and facilities for buying large quantities of diesel fuel. The equivalent in Europe is the motorway service center.

Neighborhood grocery stores not big enough to be considered a supermarket often compete with convenience stores. For example, in Los Angeles, CA, a local chain operates neighborhood grocery stores that fill a niche between a traditional supermarket and convenience store. Because they stock fresh fruit and fresh meat and carry upwards of 5000 items, they have a lot in common with the supermarket. Due to the relatively small store size, customers can get in and out conveniently, or have purchases delivered.

Convenience stores in popular culture A Quick Stop convenience store in Leonardo, New Jersey was the primary setting for the movie Clerks. Another film centered around convenience stores is Michael Winterbottom's Butterfly Kiss (1995), with a powerful performance by Amanda Plummer as a demented killer of convenience store clerks.

The eponymous characters of Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989) first meet their time-travel guide, Rufus, while hanging out in front of a convenience store, with Ted memorably declaring that "strange things are afoot at the Circle-K."

In George Sluizer The Vanishing (1988 film) (1988), remade in 1993, a woman is abducted at a roadside convenience store while her husband waits outside in the parking lot.

Apu, a character in The Simpsons, runs the local Kwik-E-Mart. This lampoons (or some might say perpetuates) the American stereotype that most convenience store workers are immigrants of Middle-Eastern or South Asian extraction.

In Dennis Etchison's horror short story, "The Late Shift" (originally in Kirby McCauley's anthology Dark Forces, 1980, and excerpted here), the undead work nights at the Stop 'N Start Market and other convenience stores.

In Twin Peaks, and its prequel movie Fire Walk With Me the characters BOB and Mike are said to "live above a convenience store".

The Paul Simon Song, Diamonds On The Soles Of Her Shoes, has the line 'She said, honey, take me dancing/but they ended up by sleeping in a doorway/by the bodegas and the lights on upper broadway...

The fictional "Lucky Dragon" convenience store chain figures prominently in William Gibson's The Bridge trilogy.

Many British TV shows feature the changing fortunes of small shops of this sort, more often known in the British Isles as the corner shop in towns or the village shop in the countryside. Examples include the BBC comedy show Open All Hours, soap operas such as Coronation Street even the BBC Radio 4 soap opera, The Archers. The history and fortunes of many leading British retailers such as Marks and Spencer and Sainsbury's are made reference to in the rags to riches drama A Woman of Substance, the debut novel of Barbara Taylor Bradford, dramatised for TV in the 1980s. The indie band Cornershop is based on the stereotype of British Asian families running the convenience stores.

See also

List of convenience stores
Bodeguita
General store
Gas station
Take a penny, leave a penny

References External links

Interview with a Korean 24-hour convenience store worker
Japonismo.com Traditional and modern Japanese culture, with an article devoted to Japanese Konbini (convenience stores) (Spanish).