Seven Eleven, Digitalization and Convenience Enhancement
CU, Subscription to Frozen and Refrigerated Compensation Insurance
GS25, Payment of Natural Disaster Consolation Money
[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Hye-seon] "Change your signboard and enjoy new benefits"
The convenience store industry is focusing on improving the working environment of store owners by presenting a win-win plan to attract over 4,000 stores up for renewal contracts in this year's free agent (FA) market.
Seven Eleven Emphasizes Digitalization
According to the convenience store industry on the 20th, Seven Eleven, the third largest in the industry, has thoroughly introduced a win-win plan centered on franchise stores this year to achieve both external expansion and internal strengthening. The focus is on enhancing convenience through simplification and efficiency of various tasks necessary for store operation.
Seven Eleven is improving its system so that all store management tasks can be performed from the POS (Point of Sale) at the counter. Through system integration (unification) between the store management computer and the POS, tasks such as ordering, sales and inventory management, product inquiries, and various data checks can be done directly at the counter.
They will also introduce Personal Digital Assistants (PDA) that can further improve operational efficiency. Digitalizing management tasks through PDA devices will make product inspection and inventory management more accurate and faster, reducing the time required. Operation of online services such as delivery and last order will also become more convenient.
They will also launch a ‘Mobile Tax Service’ that allows various tax-related documents to be sent and processed via mobile. Using the ‘Mobile Tax Service’ is expected to reduce related costs by about 50%. The scope of support for disposal of room temperature and refrigerated items, worth about 300,000 KRW quarterly, has also been expanded to include baked goods.
CU and GS25 Focus on Store Owners’ Welfare
CU and GS25 have taken steps to care for the welfare of store owners. CU subscribes to frozen/refrigerated compensation insurance and product liability insurance for all stores nationwide. The franchise headquarters will bear the full cost of these insurance premiums. The frozen/refrigerated compensation insurance covers actual losses if power supply to frozen/refrigerated equipment is interrupted due to natural disasters such as typhoons or floods, compensating for product damage.
Investment in labor management solutions has also increased. BGF Retail will provide the labor integrated solution application ‘Toegeunhae CU’, which allows handling of all labor-related matters via an app, free of charge to over 15,000 stores nationwide starting next year.
GS25 supports sales activation in underperforming stores and disaster-affected areas through various measures and provides consolation payments for natural disasters. They have introduced regular inspection services for their in-house coffee brand Cafe25 and support equipment repair costs. They also cover fees for mobile ID applications and introduce labor service providers to store owners. Additionally, they are enhancing delivery, parcel, automatic ordering, and local currency systems to improve the convenience store operating environment.
The reason convenience stores are rushing to present win-win plans at the end and beginning of the year is to gain an advantage in the store competition among companies. Since new store openings have become practically difficult due to proximity restrictions, competition for store operations among convenience stores is intensifying. Especially, about 8,000 convenience store franchises increased over 2016-2017, and with typical five-year contracts ending, many stores are expected to come up for renewal this year. The ‘signboard competition’ among convenience store headquarters is also expected to heat up significantly.
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