Couche-Tard submits bid to acquire 7-Eleven

Dive Brief:

Alimentation Couche-Tard, parent company of Circle K convenience stores, has submitted a bid to acquire Seven & i Holdings Co. Ltd., the parent company of 7-Eleven Inc., according to Monday morning announcements from both companies.
As of now, Laval, Quebec-based Couche-Tard’s bid to acquire all outstanding shares of Tokyo, Japan-based Seven & i is “non-binding and preliminary,” according to Seven & i’s announcement. Seven & i’s board of directors has formed a special committee — led by its chairman Stephen Hayes Dacus — to review the proposal.
7-Eleven and Couche-Tard are two of the biggest players in the North American convenience store industry with over 20,000 c-stores combined. A merger of the two companies would bring significant changes to the future of convenience retailing both in the U.S. and abroad, creating a new top retailer of c-stores.

Dive Insight:

Although the realization of the bid could mark groundbreaking shifts in the c-store landscape, the Canadian company is well aware it has many hurdles to jump to complete the deal.

In an announcement, Couche-Tard said the company is focused on “reaching a mutually agreeable transaction that benefits both companies' customers, employees, franchisees and shareholders,” and that “there can be no certainty at this stage that any agreement or transaction will be reached.”

“The Company does not anticipate issuing any further public statements regarding discussions with Seven & i unless or until an agreement is reached,” Couche-Tard said in its announcement.

Meanwhile, Seven & i said its special committee will conduct a “prompt, careful and comprehensive review of the proposal,” as well as its own standalone plans and any other alternatives to boosting its corporate value. It intends to make a decision on Couche-Tard’s bid once these factors have been considered.

“Neither the Board of Directors nor the Special Committee has made any determination at this time to either accept or reject the proposal from ACT, to enter into discussions with ACT or to pursue any alternative transaction,” Seven & i said in its announcement.

Outside of North America, 7-Eleven and Couche-Tard are two of the biggest convenience store retailers in the world. 7-Eleven — the world's biggest — has more than 84,000 locations across 19 countries, while Couche-Tard has 16,700 across 31 countries. A combined entity of these two giants would bring a new, influential presence to the global c-store landscape, and by far the most dominant company in the U.S. market.