7-Eleven Convenience Store Prepares to Settle in at Blockbuster Site

The logo is a familiar one, and the name has become inseparable from its convenience store concept: those pop-in markets with a little bit of everything you either forgot to pick up at the supermarket or wanted or needed on a whim or emergent situation.

It's 7-Eleven, the store for which many "thank heaven," according to its advertising jingle. Now, a third 7-Eleven has come to Middletown, in the shopping center on the corner of Route 35 south and New Monmouth Road; and, it's just about set to open for business. As the third of its kind to bow in the township, its two other Middletown sister stores are on Route 35 north and Tindall Road and Main Street in the North Middletown section (opening within the last five months).

Zoned for commercial use, the new location shares the shopping complex with Work Out World Fitness and Neelam Indian Cuisine. It resides in the sub-let pad once occupied by Blockbuster Video.

There are some items in convenience stores that are perennial, like coffee, cold beverages, candy, cigarettes and lottery tickets. Others, like used DVDs, magazines and hand-warming glove inserts, appear and disappear with the seasons and waning consumer interest.

The franchise-based 7-Eleven business model is a familiar one; and, according to Margaret Chabris, the company’s director of corporate communications, the flurry of openings in Middletown and all over the state is not coincidental. “Our company is putting a big focus on increasing business and expanding our stores in the U.S.,” said Chabris. “New Jersey is one of our major growth markets.”

Alongside the brand expansion with new 7-Eleven locations, a concerted effort in renovation and marketing has been undertaken in pre-existing stores. The initiative involves an added emphasis on the coffee island, replacing the banks of coffee makers with an assortment of pump dispensers, and offering an assortment of hot food items like pizza and chicken wings.

Also, an online campaign introducing potential licensees to the company’s franchise opportunities has begun to appear on blogs.

When asked why this store would open so close to another in the vicinity which is relatively new, Chabris elaborated on the 7-Eleven convenience target tool.

“That’s not unusual," she said. "We have two stores in order to accommodate different traffic patterns.  The stores are operated by two different franchisees; the franchisee for the newer store is currently in training.  It is not unusual for 7-Eleven stores in some parts of the country to be close by or across the street from each other.”

Chabris explained that pitting one of their locations against another is not in their best financial interests. But, she said, "because 7-Eleven shares in the gross profit of the stores with the franchisees, we want them to be successful, and would not open stores too (terribly) close (as) to cannibalize their sales.”

The concept of such a business opportunity for a franchisee is based on another form of convenience. By buying into an established brand like 7-Eleven, or their immediate competitors Wawa or QuikCheck, a franchisee gets the infrastructure of a major corporation and antecedent recognizability, Chabris explained.

Because the floor plans and décor of such operations are set according to a company design, shopping at one location is much like shopping at any of their other locations. That might not be of interest to anyone seeking individuality, but for any business hooking into a steady consumer base, instant familiarity is a commodity.

Most independently owned mom-and-pop delis and stores take years to build their clientele. With such franchise situations, the customer base is as built-in as the advertising color scheme.

Middletown Township Administrator Anthony Mercantante, who used to be the township's planner, explained township planning protocol, saying that in situations such as a new tenant occupying an existing building, Middletown adheres to the free market system and exerts no influence on where companies might choose to locate themselves. “Generally, towns don’t regulate changes in shopping centers unless there is new construction added to the building," he said.

Since the latest structure now coming under 7-Eleven's occupation has already been zoned and inspected by the township during the Blockbuster tenure, further intervention is not necessary. “What goes into that space, provided it is a legal business, is of no consequence to us," he said. "The town doesn’t have any say where one business changing over to another is concerned.”

In Middletown, Mercantante explained, businesses come and go depending on what the market will bear. For instance, "on Route 35, we have a Dunkin Donuts," he said. "Last year, farther down on 35, another Dunkin Donuts opened (occupying the pad accompanying Sunoco Gas Station, corner of Route 35 and Cooper Road). It didn’t do the business (it needed to thrive) and eventually closed."

As a major international franchise corporation, 7-Eleven is going through more than just the expected national growing pains, explained Margaret Chabris. “Since Friday morning, we’ve been mounting a campaign in response to the earthquake; we have over 1,300 7-11 locations in Japan,” she said.

According to 7-Eleven Inc., the franchisee for the Route 35/New Monmouth location is currently in training and would not be available for comment, nor was the property's broker Larry Pinilis Realty.