7-Eleven Japan

Americans would probably not think of 7-Eleven as being a place where you could spend a day parousing name brand clothing, jewelry and other nicities, before devouring a 1/4lb Jalepeño Dog coverd in sloppy greasy chilli and 3rd rate immitation nacho cheese. Alas, we were wrong not to think so. The convenient store known in America for its Slurpee™ and Big Bite™ hot dogs® is often thought of as a place where night creatures buy their hyper-caffinated drinks, and 14yr old hoodlems take their girlfriends to buy dinner. However, that image is not shared by the Japanese.

Since 1991, 7-Eleven has been run by IYG Holding Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of Ito-Yokado Co., Ltd., a giant corporation reminicient of the zaibatsu of the Japanese Empire. This may be part of the reason Japan has almost twice as many 7-Eleven convenience stores as the United States and Canada put together, along with something non existant in America – 7 Eleven shopping malls.

These shopping malls are referred to as Ito-Yokado by the Japanese and often “big 7-Eleven” by gaijin, due to the giant 7-Eleven signs that grace their premises. At the the one located in the Gondo retail district in Nagano city, one may purchase anything from, yes, fine jewelry, to cheep food (though the chilli cheese Jalapeño Dog has yet eluded the Japanese pallate). If you do not find what you are looking for on their menu, you may opt to go to Denny’s, around the corner.

Denny's is also owned by IYG Holding Company, but the Japanese version again is entirely different – the greasy spoon style diner doesn’t translate well into Japanese – with the rice, miso soup, and teriyaki chicken “set meal” among the top selling menue items. Actually, whatever your needs, one of 7-Eleven’s affiliates or subsidiaries will probably be able to help you, from realestate to banking, to publishing and manufacturing, to shopping and dinning, to a nice cold slurpee to share with your girlfriend.