Convenience Store Industry
“The new Convenience Card works the same as cash at 7-Eleven stores, making checkout even faster,” said Tim McCallum, 7-Eleven, Inc.’s director for Services. “No more scrambling for coins or waiting for the cashier to make change. No PIN numbers or signatures to deal with. Just swipe the card to pay and be on your way. Our goal is to make our customers experience more convenient by getting them in and out of the store as quickly as possible, by speeding up transaction times.” Similar in appearance to a plastic credit card, the 7-Eleven Convenience Card also comes with a smaller keychain version. With magnetic strips encoded on the back of each card, they are conveniently linked to the same account. “How many times have you seen people rush in, keys in hand, grab what they want and then fumble for their wallet or dig for change? With the keychain card, not only do you not have to look for change, you don’t even need your wallet,” McCallum said. “You grab your keys and, with the key card on your ring, you’re good to go. It doesn’t get any easier than that.” Available at participating 7-Eleven stores, the card may be loaded with any cash-value amount between $5 and $500. To reward card-users, any customer who loads or reloads a card with at least $25 will receive a free 16-ounce cup of 7-Eleven coffee, 22-ounce Slurpee® or 32-ounce Big Gulp® fountain drink. With this newest product, the company that introduced convenience retailing to the world more than 75 years ago and brought prepaid phone cards to the American public in the early 1990s, has taken convenience one step further. And as Americans transition from a cash-and-carry to a card-and-carry consumer society, 7-Eleven wants to get out ahead of the curve. Often referred to as stored value cards by the retail industry, the growth potential of this new way to pay is gigantic, some experts project. Indeed, the prepaid industry will top $32 billion this year. Aside from being a must-have convenience item for habitual 7-Eleven customers, the reloadable cash cards are also great for gift-giving – and not just during seasonal holidays. The 7-Eleven Convenience Card is ideal for a customer who wants to buy a Slurpee card to reward a child, a coffee card for a friend at the office, a fuel card for a teenager or a plain 7-Eleven card for everyone else. “Graphically the cards are designed to be collectible and match consumers’ varying lifestyles,” McCallum said of the cards. “The introductory attention-grabbing designs feature some of our top products like Slurpee, coffee, gasoline and a 7-Eleven logo card. New designs will be introduced throughout the year including holographic images and cards featuring X-treme sports.” Regardless of the design, the 7-Eleven Convenience Card can be used to purchase any thing at participating 7-Eleven stores except lottery tickets and money orders. Once purchased, cards are activated for immediate use. As an added convenience, cards may be re-loaded online or by calling a toll-free number using a credit card for payment or at any 7-Eleven store with cash or credit card. To protect the value of the card, customers may register their card with 7-Eleven by going to the company’s website, www.7-eleven.com. In the event a card is lost or stolen, the customer can simply call a toll-free number and report the card missing. The original card will be de-activated, and the balance on the card at the time reported stolen will be transferred to a replacement card and sent to the customer. Customers may also check their Convenience Card balance at any store, online or by calling a toll-free 1-800 number. “Unlike supermarket cards where you have to register your name and personal information, this card can be completely anonymous,” McCallum said. “Only if the customer wants to register their card for security purposes will 7-Eleven receive any customer information.” 7-Eleven does not charge any transaction fees for loading or reloading the Convenience Cards. If a card is inactive for 12 months, a $2 per month service fee will be assessed until the card is used again. About 7-Eleven, Inc. 7-Eleven, Inc. (NYSE: SE) is the premier name and largest chain in the convenience retailing industry. Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, 7-Eleven, Inc. operates or franchises approximately 5,800 7-Eleven® stores in the United States and Canada and licenses approximately 19,000 7-Eleven stores in 17 other countries and territories throughout the world. During 2002, 7-Eleven stores worldwide generated total sales of more than $33 billion. Find out more online at www.7-Eleven.com. Dana Manley 7-Eleven, Inc. 214.828.7345
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