We Fixed It, You're Welcome - 7-Eleven’s Egg Salad Experiment

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Starting point is 00:00:12 Wayfair, every style, every home. Welcome to We Fixed It. You're welcome. The show where we take over companies, you come along for the ride, and we try to put them back better than we found them. Let's talk about that little convenience mart that seems to have existed since the dawn of 7-Eleven. For kids and those with a sweet tooth, it's a mini paradise filled with candy and slurpees. For gamers and long-haul truckers, it's a place to get coffee or beverages the size of a bathtub.

Starting point is 00:00:42 And so it was and so it has always been. But with the departure of their longtime CEO and evolving consumer habits that have led to the closure of hundreds of stores, it was time for a change. With their IPO now delayed to 2027 at least, they have a relatively short window to get really profitable. And the direction they've chosen is not what you might expect. We'll get there. And by the end, we're going to decide whether 7-Eleven is making the right moves to be newly relevant, whether they haven't gone far enough, or whether we can come up with a better fix. And to do that, we're going to need to know more. Chino, give us the lowdown on 7-Eleven. Thanks, Aaron. Okay. So this week, we're specifically talking about one of the most

Starting point is 00:01:22 unexpectedly serious sandwiches in convenience store history, the 7-Eleven. Japanese egg salad now trying to make a leap into North America. And yes, it sounds like a tiny little lunch item, but for 7-Eleven in Japan, this is a really big brand test to move into North America. So some background there. In Japan, 7-Eleven is not just a gas station stop like we experience in North America. It's a national habit. The chain has more than 21,000 stores there, almost 80% of Japanese consumers say they frequent it often. The conbini market itself is massive, so about 13.5 trillion yen, which equates to about 86.7 billion in 2025, which tells you that this is not just like a novelty culture,

Starting point is 00:02:18 it's an everyday food ecosystem. So now here comes North America's version, and the reaction has been a mix when it's it comes to this egg sandwich of curiosity, hype, and a bit of side-eyed, to be frank. The U.S. version launched in late 2025, and Canada followed in 26. And critics immediately notice that there is a bit of an awkward part about this introduction in North America. So in Japan, it cost about 230 yen, which equates to about $1.50. but here in the North America, it's $5.50.

Starting point is 00:03:00 So that is a lot of money for a humble egg sandwich. And so 7-Eleven really needs just more than a viable food moment to really up those costs and kind of fill the gap. And North American convenience stores are under a lot of strain. The U.S. convenience store sales have been down for a second year straight in 2024, and 7-11 North America's foot traffic has been down 6% year-over-year in the recent quarter. So the bigger question is not just, will people buy this sandwich? Can 7-11 use this sandwich to fix the brand, improve trust, and prove it belongs in the same conversation as food-like competitors like Casey's and Wal-Was and Oil

Starting point is 00:03:50 farms. So because of the answer is yes, this little egg salad sandwich might be the start of something bigger. But if not, it might be a polite reminder that not every Japanese hit translates clearly across the Pacific. So let's dive in and let's see if this egg salad sandwich is going to help save 7-Eleven in North America. So we're doing it all. We're devoting an episode to an egg salad sandwich. This is a pivotal, it's a pivotal sandwich. I think I love, I love this topic, Chino and Aaron. I think it's great because I do think it's about the transformation of 7-Eleven and how it applies here. I mean, I remember going to 7-Eleven when I was a child getting a quarter and walking down, there was one, a block and a half away and standing in front of the candy aisle and being like, oh my gosh, what am I going to get, right?

Starting point is 00:04:47 that's dating me, 25 cents for candy. But at the same time, I've seen how over my lifetime it's transformed into the big gulp. It's the place where you go to grab something at any time, any, you know, any time a day. Then it started the gas station stuff too, you know, so there was gas there. It wasn't just a convenience store. So really, it's become, you know, part of our culture, too, in a different way. And so I think, you know, the point is, you know, right now with all of this really kind of modern Asian pop culture type of events, this has really become a very like kind of transcendent event for 7-11 in terms of can they take what is such huge wildly successful, you know, customer experience here. 80% of customers go to 7-Eleven in Japan to buy this egg salad sandwich. So, Aaron, this is,

Starting point is 00:05:50 yes, it's about egg salad, versus like what people go to 7-Eleven for here in the States or in North America. So I do think it's a big, you know, it's a big turning point. And as fixers, what are we going to do to offer suggestions for them to be able to make that pivot? And I don't know if the egg salad sandwich is going to be as big of a hit. You know, I think their biggest issue is really operationally, how are you going to make this happen and build a trust with people? Because to your point, Chino, I think it's more than side eye. I think people, you know, joke about the hot dogs on the rotisserie at 7-11, like, they've been there for four years, you know, or whatever. You know, you see viral TikToks about those hot dogs. So, like, to think that you're going to get a fresh

Starting point is 00:06:40 soft, amazing egg salad sandwich seems like 7-11 doesn't seem like the place I'd be going. And for that price, we can go to your favorite place, Chino Subway. Right. You know what I mean? You know, and you can actually see them making it. So I think there's a lot of different things that they're going to have to do in order to, you know, make this real. They're going to have to consistently execute on that freshness part, the texture. that whole part of the experience, the display and brand, Aaron, like, that's not what we've gone

Starting point is 00:07:18 to 7-11 for, you know? So, like, how do we remarket that? And then really, it's going to be about building that customer trust, right? And not having a viral moment. Yeah, it's a full-on customer retraining. Because, you know, yes, they have sandwiches, but they're kind of in the back somewhere and they're the triangle ones. And, you know, you question their, maybe their freshness.

Starting point is 00:07:43 I don't know. They're probably fine. But to retrain consumers that we have this fresh new offering, and it's the start of something big, you have to rewire consumers' brains about what they even think about 7-Eleven. And there's something that I'd call like the thrill of discovery. So, you know, for American consumers or just Americans that have been to Japan and had that personal experience and and enjoyed the freshness of the sandwich there. Maybe when it's available in their neighborhood store, even if it's a recreation, maybe it's

Starting point is 00:08:15 just not. There's just the uniqueness of it is gone when it's that readily available. Maybe it's something that can't be recaptured. I remember when I went to years ago, I went to London and there was predomanger as a chain. I think McDonald's has some ownership of it or something. And, you know, there's someone young and on the. ago is relatively cheap. It tastes it was good. I said, oh, this is great. I can't believe London has this thing that I don't know about. Years later, I was on the East Coast in D.C. or New York or

Starting point is 00:08:45 something. There's Pradeymanje and I tried it there and it was okay. It was all right. It wasn't the same. So, you know, carrying it through to the thrill of discovery, if I, you know, I had that experience at a moment in my life being outside of my own culture and, you know, enjoying something somewhere else. The minute it was on my own turf, it wasn't good or it didn't have the same impact. It's really interesting. So, you know, this is a subject close to my heart as we, as I think the resident snacker of the group. So I'd been to Japan and when I was there, I kid you not, there was one day, we were there for 16 days that we went to 7-Eleven seven times in a day. and I got an egg salad, not every time, but at least twice in that day.

Starting point is 00:09:36 You know, I think what the viral moment for tourists, but, you know, a regular for people in Japan is just the freshness. So they use, you know, a milk bread, and the egg salad, again, is quite fresh. And so you can see them constantly refilling it. So again, totally different experience, right? You walk into the 7-Eleven. It's not just, you know, some dungy food that you're questioning in the back. You walk in and, you know, you're bursting with fresh, you know, fresh air that comes in.

Starting point is 00:10:17 There are a number of different aisles with a variety of different foods that are there, which is interesting. So, again, if you go back to looking at kind of the Japanese consumer, it's a part of their food ecosystem, right? People go to 7-Eleven to grab and go and get something similar to the pre de mage, which is, again, all over Europe. You see them in airports, but again, not the same because there's not as much frequent, you know, foot traffic. And so the way the aisles even are designed when you walk in,

Starting point is 00:10:49 there's, again, that selection almost as if you're in a grocery store. And so to your point, Aaron, it is a completely different experience. going to the Japanese 7-Eleven to North America. And I did do a bit of, you know, on-the-ground research on this, and I did pick up an ex-salid yesterday from 7-Eleven in Toronto. And what I will say is it missed the mark. You know, I've never in all of my times in Japan, ever experienced a crust. They cut the crust off.

Starting point is 00:11:24 There was a piece of crust that was on this egg salad. I got one from the back, and I went there with the purpose. I was buying the egg salad sandwich, but I, you know, pick one in the back, looked a little dingy. I saw that there was two fresh ones on a bowl of ice in the front. So I got that one, it felt fresher. But again, how do I know? And, you know, taking a bite into it, they weren't chopped as finely. And so the sandwich itself was not at all at the caliber of what you're looking for,

Starting point is 00:12:01 particularly knowing that you're also paying almost five times more than what you would in Japan. So, Melissa, I'm very curious from like a customer experience perspective, just with how Japan does it and how North America has it, has been, you know, treating this convenience of an 11 experience. how can we translate that into North America to make them successful? Support for today's episode comes from Square, the business platform that helps sellers become the best in the neighborhood. Whether you're growing your business or just trying to keep up with it,

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Starting point is 00:14:07 The second component is the culture and that customer experience. So, Aaron, like, when you're in a place and you're experiencing it in a manner that is embedded in that culture, and like, you know, when you were in in Japan, this is part of what their culture is. So I'm a huge fan of K-dramas and all those kinds of things. And whenever you're watching a K-Drama, they're literally going to these convenience stores and they're getting snacks all times a day, all times a night, all ages, right? And you see that it's in a complete experience where they actually have tables outside. actually they can go get a sweet, they can go get a sandwich, they can go get a hot pot,

Starting point is 00:14:54 whatever they want. So it's something that we haven't really utilized convenience store, you know, like the 7-Eleven experience as something like that. We've really kind of leaned into the convenience component of 7-Eleven, right? Where it's like, oh my gosh, I'm out of milk, I got to run to 7-Eleven. Or, you know what, I'm dying for a big gulp. I need my diet Coke fix, whatever it is, right? I need to get gas.

Starting point is 00:15:21 Oh, I think I'll go get some candy, right? It's not like, oh, I'm going to go to 7-Eleven because it's on my way every single day and see what, you know, whatever I feel like to eat, right? You know, I'm going to eat that four-year-old hot dog. So I do think that 7-Eleven needs to figure out, are they willing in the North America, willing to restructure it and reframe it so that it is something that's more. more successful as it is in Japan, but they may have to think about where their entry point is going to be.

Starting point is 00:15:57 Because I think it's really interesting that they chose egg salad sandwiches as their entry point because that seems to me the most difficult thing to do, to your point, there's the bread, you know, that has to be fresh. You know, the egg salad has to be fresh, you know, how they're presenting it to your point, you know, it's a turnoff when there's a world. one crust left. That seems like quality control there hasn't worked exactly, right? So what about my opportunity, I would say, is I think that they should have gone with

Starting point is 00:16:32 something like a ramen bar, right? And the reason I say something like that is because the freshness is the consumer actually making the ramen right there, right? You know, Chino, I'm sure you saw that in Japan where you can go. and they sit there and the boiling water and it boils it and you throw an egg in or whatever packets of different kinds of things. And there's a lot easier control over the fresh ingredients. If it's an egg, green onions, mushrooms, something like that. Like that's a little easier to have quality control over, you know, in your store versus having like to continually present egg salad sandwiches out.

Starting point is 00:17:19 not knowing, like, are we going to even sell any today? Yeah. And with an egg salad sandwich, there's not much to hide off. You know? Right. Right. And thank you, Chino, for taking the head and going undercover for us. But what I was saying is part of it is the, you know, if you're in Tokyo or you're at a pop-up at

Starting point is 00:17:40 South by Southwest or you waited in line for three hours to at in and out, part of it's the experience. So let's say it's exactly the same ingredients. exactly the same food quality, which in Chino's case didn't deliver, but let's say it is. And you're standing in the middle of a dimly lit 7-Eleven. You didn't have an experience. You had a product. But I remember when the Simpsons movie came out, they did, they themed. They did like a limited time theming of some of the 7-Eleven locations.

Starting point is 00:18:12 And they sold duff beer and they sold the same donuts they have. They were just bigger with sprinkles. And if you bought a donut, it was like incredible, you know, because you're in the middle of it. It looked like, you know, the Quiky Mart in 7-E.1. That was cool. You know, it tasted probably the same. But people left, you know, high-fiving. Like, we just had an experience with 7-Eleven.

Starting point is 00:18:35 So I think, you know, product is going to be one challenge. The product they chose is kind of a head scratcher. They do have Japanese ownership. So it's inherent to, you know, it's part of the brand story. It's part of the culture. But egg salad sandwiches are kind of a novelty anyway. Like is it a food staple? Like if you go to a Togo's or a subway, it's like the 45th item down, right?

Starting point is 00:19:01 Right. Not big draw. So Melissa, like you're thinking about what else could there be? Because I think they're on the right track with let's offer something fresh. Let's prove we can do it. Let's use that as our jumping off point. But did they choose the right hero to make this all happen? I don't think so.

Starting point is 00:19:18 And you know, it's also interesting too. So again, when you go to 7-Eleven, there's a number of things you can get. You can get a hand roll, the egg salads, the donuts, the macho donuts that they had. One thing that also did go viral that I think that was a miss. I think that they chose the wrong product on this one. But it was their ready-to-go ice coffees. So what you would do in Japan is, again, during the busy, like, you know, it's an in-and-out, it's convenience. We're not there for a long time.

Starting point is 00:19:48 have to go to work or wherever. And again, it has become a part of the ecosystem within Japan. And so emulating something that is a little easier and tangible for the North American market, coffee, right? We love an ice coffee. You know, I don't want to spend $1,000 at Starbucks for it or having to drive a thousand ways to go find a Starbucks, we make an ice coffee now. But they have these cups that they would.

Starting point is 00:20:18 have and dispensers of this ready-made coffee and you can add and do different things. But to your point, Melissa, about kind of the quality control, you know, understanding that it's fresh. Like if your trouble is that people don't trust that it's fresh, one way to make them feel like it's fresh to know that it's fresh is having them make it with you, right? And so it's simple as there's literally just a block of ice in a cup and you pour your coffee And similar to McDonald's tactic, if you remember, and again, Canadian here, so Tim Hortons was a huge rage. You know, you'd go get your Timmy's, you get your double double every morning.

Starting point is 00:20:58 It became a part of the Canadian ethos. And then McDonald's came around with their $1.5.5 drink, right? And they lowered your income. It goes like a dollar. I don't mind spending a dollar on coffee. Let me see. There's McDonald's every which way. Let me go and see.

Starting point is 00:21:14 And it changed people's behavior on how they had their morning routine. So instead of driving and piling at the Tim Horton's drive-thew, you now had access to L.O. to go to McDonald's, and you're paying a lot less for it. Of course, McDonald's only does that now during a short time because they've caught you, they got your hooks in you. People got addicted to the McDonald's coffee. And they realized, you know what, this is a little bit better.

Starting point is 00:21:42 But again, when you look at the North American market, coffee. And I think that is the myth that 7-11 has done with this egg salad. Again, I love an egg salad sandwich. I think it's very hard to duplicate in a North American market. And I think the way to pivot is looking at their ice coffee so that you can actually change and drive that behavior when it comes to people's morning routines. And I think, to your point, Aaron, creating an experience around that, you know, maybe having only select locations in the beginning, but also showcasing, yes, putting it near their eggs salads and saying, hey, here's different experiences there so that people can experience 7-Eleven

Starting point is 00:22:25 in North America in a different way. Yeah, I love that, Gino. I think that's a great, another great entry point because, again, we're talking about things that can be duplicated consistently over time, and it's a lot easier. And I don't know, Erin, if you've seen the TikToks. I mean, obviously, Lachino and I have of the people going in and getting the coffee because it's just a cup of ice and they get to choose all the things and then you put it in like it's like a little blender. You can blend it or you can add the coffee, whatever you want to do. And it's it's just a very interesting because it's a very different way and it feels unique and like you're kind of hip and cool that you like go in and you grab that cup and you know

Starting point is 00:23:09 exactly that it's just iced, but you're going to be putting all this other stuff in it. And you're making it for yourself. So from a customer perspective, I definitely think that's a great way to go as well because you're not having to deal with the freshness issue so much. I also love this idea, Chino, of like, you know, with customers today, like the idea of like competition and kind of, you know, Aaron, there's that whole thing of like, Oh my God, there's only five of these. I got to get him. La Boo,

Starting point is 00:23:43 whatever it is, right? You know, I got to get it. I got to get into it. I love that idea of 7-Eleven being very intentional about having like a Japanese 7-Eleven pop up in certain locations. And even if it's in every 7-Ele that like one aisle is like Japanese signage, like all the things so that you feel like you're immersed in that. experience and you're going in and you see okay there's the freezer with the cups already ready to go and then right next to it is all the drink options right for you to use in the cup then there's you know a hot pot station for you know and maybe they don't have the 400 different kinds of

Starting point is 00:24:27 ramen that they have you know but they have you know 10 kinds of ramen and then they have you know eggs and green onions and hot peppers whatever else you want to put in your ramen you know and have that ready to go and just have it be feel like more you know Japanese candy maybe a fresh you know sandwich spot there they have the strawberry cream sandwiches and they have the egg salad sandwiches and all the different kind of sandwiches that they have and see how that goes because honestly if it doesn't fly for 7-11 here then maybe they should try to figure out what they could do to make it hip just the way, you know, like bring back something, you know, icy, you know, I sees and, you know, whatever. I don't know. I mean, I know they still have all of those

Starting point is 00:25:18 things, but. Slurpees. Yeah. But you're saying be selective and do more at fewer stores. You feel like I'm in a special 7-Eleven as opposed to try to do something at scale and not doing it to the degree that it could be carried out. Right. Just to ensure that you're, on the right path because even though we're we know that like k-pop and asian you know these types of things are are very hip right now and viral it doesn't necessarily translate because again our convenience store experience hasn't been built around the same as in japan so like you know 7-11 isn't the only player in japan either right but they're all going you know every single person is going to a convenience store every day. And they don't look at, I don't think they look at

Starting point is 00:26:10 it as like what we consider 7-Eleven to be, right? Like I go get batteries. And then because I'm standing in line, I'll get a lot of ticket. You know, like I don't really look at 7-Eleven as like the place I'm going to go get a sandwich for lunch. Forgetting about the eggs salad sandwich specifically is Melissa, is our 7-Eleven's set up. Let's say they do find something fresh at scale. Our 7-Eleven set up with store footprints and with the cost of, you know, labor costs and fresh food costs are they set up to have some kind of station in the middle of a store with that work operationally? AI is moving fast across the enterprise. But without visibility, it's just chaos, different tools, different models, different teams

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Starting point is 00:27:43 Old Navy's drapey denim wide leg. But, you know, I think it would be hard. I think that they need to tighten up their, you know, what they're actually selling in that convenience store. You know, like, you know, I'm sure you guys have gone into 7-Eleven and you're like, oh my God, that pork and beans has been on the shelf. Right? You know what?

Starting point is 00:28:04 And I'm always so surprised when I go in and like even certain types of candies, right? You know, you're like, do people even eat buy those anymore? You know, that I think it is something that we've had people talk about and brand positioning and where you put things on the shelf. I think they're going to, they would have to do kind of a whole do-over, makeover. But I think it would be really a great opportunity. for them to design 7-Elevens that have a pop-up experience. So you could start the Japanese pop-up, you know,

Starting point is 00:28:43 but you could also do another pop-up, a partnership with, you know, Sabaro's pizza or something like that where you're like, hey, we got rid of the hot dogs, but now we have fresh pizza, you know, that kind of thing. And come grab a slice and a slurpee or come grab a slice and a big gulp, you know, and we're going to make it, you know, here's a value meal for you, you know, while you're walking out the door. So I do think that there is definitely a lot of work that would have to be done. But if they're leaning into the egg salad,

Starting point is 00:29:15 they already are having to make a big, they're having to reposition because that fresh food cabinet has to be in the front too. And that's a whole other, you know, I don't know where their kitchens are that they're making those and they're bringing them to them. I don't know. Yeah, I don't know where the test markets were and if they did consumer data and they ran egg salad versus other potential sandwiches or fresh offerings and egg salad won and they won with that or if there was just some mandate from above that said nope we're doing this i don't know or they're going off of a viral moment of the egg salad but i do think it's an interesting test case because when we talk about the i guess ecosystem is the word i'm using today but um the consumer behavior of going to a

Starting point is 00:30:02 convenience store. I think of one place that does this a lot. New York, bodegas, right? People go and get a, you know, a cheese in hand, like, you know, I'm not from New York, so I'm going to claim to know what the sayings are, but it is one market that convenience, quote, you know, I'm doing air quotes of people that are listening. It's embedded into people's every day. And I think that would be a great place to test. Again, we talk New York, we pop-ups, environmental moments, and limit of time offers, if you did a couple 7-Elevens that are there and you do the experience and the value and just create spaces. And, you know, again, the ice coffee, I think is the best barrier to entry here.

Starting point is 00:30:47 It allows you not to worry about so much of the logistics. Again, across all states, it's very tricky to do. Let's do the ice coffee. Maybe you have, you know, a few egg salad sandwiches. but it's limited. So you know, you get people lining up at the door saying, okay, I need this now and oh, you didn't get it. You got to come back next day.

Starting point is 00:31:08 But in the meantime, just like McDonald's hooked the Canadian market, have this ice coffee. Instead of going to your bodega here, maybe you're going into 7-Eleven to get this really quick ice coffee and go. And again, getting it as part of the consumer behavior in a market that has a bigger aptitude

Starting point is 00:31:28 for stopping inconvenience. answers have has more of that footprint already from that perspective. And I think if you can capitalize and use that as your test to then figure out what products work, what is sold, what's just hype for a second, what, where are the margins also with again? Yeah. You know, how does that actually work? And I think that would be a better course of action versus, again, that abysmal egg salad sandwich as I had that I was actually looking forward to. Well, and I think like you bring up a really good point, Aaron, is that if their executive team is, you know, embedded in the Japanese 7-Elevens that have really been the category

Starting point is 00:32:20 leader and, you know, they probably thought, oh, that translates over here because we know that, you know, all these, you know, types of things, pop culture is very strong across the globe. Well, I do think it's, again, not knowing who your customers really are and understanding what your brand looks like and feels like. But I love this idea of introducing this as, you know, if this is how 7-Eleven would like to transform and become more of a place to convene, you know, more of a bodega where it's like the neighborhood store like they should lean into that and so they should bring in more fresh food they should bring in some of those things and then to your point Aaron about like space in a 7-Eleven maybe they don't have this space now for you know all the things

Starting point is 00:33:21 like the pork and beans and the things that you're not going to you know and batteries and whatever else that they, you know, they scotch tape, whatever they have, you know, maybe they're going to have to figure out a different way to meet those needs of a convenience store, whether it's they stock it in the back and they don't put it out in display and they have like a little terminal and you can say, hey, I need, you know, some masking tape and a hammer, you know, and they will say, oh, we have that in the back. Let me go get it for you, blah, blah, blah. that would be great, but it doesn't take up a whole shelf space for like the one person every

Starting point is 00:34:02 four years that comes in for that stuff. Or even they create their, I mean, I know they don't want to do this, but partner with like somebody like Amazon or somebody and then to say, well, you can come order it here at 7-Eleven and we'll have it delivered to your house by the time you got. That's interesting. Well, I love the idea of the cultural immersion and, you know, being introduced to things that are hit somewhere else in the world that I didn't even know about and then having it brought you know being a part of a themed environment and all I you know I love that part of what we're saying and capitalizing on one social trend and going all in on it that's that's a dangerous thing to do yeah it's it's almost like um if they rename themselves six seven you know like and we're we're

Starting point is 00:34:47 going all in on that and you know what are we going to do what are we going to do a year from now um how's that going to reflect we you know this for for for japanese culture that's a that's a part of everyday life that's a staple it's a part it's it's a it's a bitual for americans it's a curio a novel teach you know you tried it once would you try it again based on that experience i'm going to give it another go because i believe i love them when i was there like it was something that would begin every day but again i'm curious just to see i got to keep the test going i've got my scientist had on and i got to test it out But I do want to say one thing that you're going back to your point, Melissa, about, you know, embedding that, you know, the 7-Eleven into people's every day.

Starting point is 00:35:33 That's the nugget. That is what 7-Eleven needs to do to translate it to the North American market. It doesn't matter about what the viral product is. You can put Amazon it. Sure. But if you don't have, again, that consumer behavior happening, it's not going to work. You're not going to translate the same success. And the success in Japan is because it is part of the consumer's behavior day to day.

Starting point is 00:36:00 So that is what they need to tap into and let go of what the trend looks like in that product. And I think by starting in New York, where there's already an appetite for that already and a market there. And testing out, again, re-looking at space. with certain areas, of course, and then going from there. But if you can't change the consumer behavior, it doesn't really matter about me going in every once in a while to see if this egg salad sandwich is better than the last one. Yeah, I agree, Chino. And also one thing, one thing we haven't talked about yet is, you know, part of everyday consumer behavior forever and ever has been filling up your car with gas. and a lot of these 7-Elevens are gas station adjacent,

Starting point is 00:36:53 and that's part of the draw. While I'm here with electric vehicles and hybrid vehicles, you don't make, it's less habitual. So some consumers have cut out that entirely. I haven't been to a gas station for my car for three years. That means that I, you know, the odds of me stumbling into a 7-Eleven because I'm drawn by something in the window, I'm just not going to be near it. Right.

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Starting point is 00:37:42 Luxury sales claim based on S&P Global Mobility Canadian New Vehicle Total Registrations for calendar year 2025 for the Cadillac definition of luxury. You know, and I do think, that like I love the idea of embedding it in that local neighborhood culture. I think that's really important. I think that's why you see the bodega's working so well in any town. I know that, for example, here in Denver, my son goes to the same corner one every day and gets, you know, coffee, whatever he gets.

Starting point is 00:38:14 I don't even want to know, cigarette, maybe, you know, whatever he's getting. but he has a relationship now with the owner. You know what I mean? Like they know each other. They talk about things. The owner will be like, hey, I want you to try this. You know, da, da, da, da. So, like, I feel like that is what's kind of missing in, like, the 7-Eleven culture now.

Starting point is 00:38:36 Because, like, to your point, Aaron, it's very transient when you have people coming in just to get gas, right? Or get a lot of ticket. It's not really like, I'm going to go there and get my coffee. and my donut, Chino, like you were saying, like I, you know, you have this to importance that, you know, you have this whole thing where you do it, you know, you habituate that. So somehow they need to hook that into it. And I do think I love the idea of expanding it to become more of a cultural phenomenon because 7-Eleven does have that brand recognition. But I do think it was probably a miss for them to start with the egg salad. I mean, honestly, I think they should

Starting point is 00:39:21 have picked something like, I love the idea around the ice drinks. Like, that's like kids love that. And that's all ages, right? Like, because they have the drinks, the ice drinks ready to go for all different types of drinks. And then like even like, you know, having the starting into the fresh food by starting it while you're making your own ramen. You're doing it. You're doing yourself. You can see the ingredients going from, ingredients going in. But again, I do love the idea of kind of integrating it. And I love the idea of having it be like a pop up. And I do, you know, because now you see these pop-ups coming up. Like we have them in Denver. We have that. There's tons in L.A., right? You know, Japanese comedian stores, right? Where you can go get the sandwiches.

Starting point is 00:40:11 Like they show you. And they show you, they're making. it, how they make it. So there's that whole thing that like it's going to be hard for 7-11 to do that unless they really kind of double down. Yeah, they've made some attempts to modernize and make sure that you're, you know, if like again, for someone like me that unless I'm adjacent to it, I'm probably not thinking 7-Eleven, but they have an, I have an, I have their app. They have an app now. They have a rewards program. They have, you know, buy however many coffees and get one type of thing. So they are trying to think about ways of courting consumers that have not made 7-Eleven habitual. And Melissa, like you said, there's sometimes you're there out of necessity.

Starting point is 00:40:54 Like, I'm here because I functionally need something, or I'm here because I'm thirsty and you happen to be here. But it's not consumers that chose to be there or wanted to be there or established a preference of 7-Eleven over anything else. So that's the hurdle. That's the hill they need to climb right now. Well, should we fix it? I think we're all over this one.

Starting point is 00:41:16 I think we can do this. I'm going to throw some stuff into the mix. So, all right. So what they're going to do, we'll go with the pop-up idea. We'll go with not just one in one sandwich that has had mixed success as the flag that we're going to plant and say, this is the reinvention of 7-Eleven. But we're going to stick with the pop-up idea so we can have fully, but you got to go all in. a fully theme out your store, make it this immersive experience. You could have a Japanese pop up.

Starting point is 00:41:50 You do a K-pop pop up. One thing I was thinking is that there's no, I can't think of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich kind of a place where you pop in and you get seven, eight varieties, 12 varieties of peanut butter and jelly or you make your own type of thing. And kids would love it. It's convenience food. It's easy to manage. Maybe that's something that they could roll out with.

Starting point is 00:42:11 and say this is the American equivalent of the egg salad sandwich. So that's a thought. With the reward program and the audience tracking and the data collection, they could be doing things like, you know, if you're habitual and you build up that relationship and you do your same store and you know everybody, who's our biggest fan? You know, who's the biggest fan of this store? These are things that could be shared socially and used to show that there's

Starting point is 00:42:37 stimulus and things happening. So who's our biggest fan with 7-Elevens, you know, across the globe. Who's the biggest traveler, the most loyal 7-11 fan, wherever they go? Who is the champion of our worst selling product? So who's buying the Vandekamp's pork and beans that no one else is buying? You know, let's make them a hero for a day type of thing. And then let's go with, you know, let's do something fresh, show that we are committed to that, that make it yourself type of thing or have it made for you or um you know be create an experience beyond just lining up and getting coffee and getting whatever you needed to do i let's go i like the

Starting point is 00:43:17 coffee bar idea um we'll call it be be your own barista and uh and you know you come in you get your ice coffee any of which way maybe there's uh japanese or asian inspired flavors too um and you get you got a cultural moment um you get introduced to something you didn't know of out that's inherent to the Japanese culture and the ownership of the company and the brand. And then the pop-ups, you can't do them at every store. So put care and intentionality into them, make them really, really experiential, where there's things you can only get at that one store that you get until they run out and give people something that really talk about.

Starting point is 00:43:59 And while you're doing that, work on the egg salad sandwich and see if you can get it, make it a little better. and maybe, you know, that'll catch on somewhere. And then you figure out how that fits into the mix. But I think you have a lot of other avenues and priorities you could be addressing first before you go, you know, double down on the egg salad. Melissa, what do you say? Do we fix it?

Starting point is 00:44:21 I think we definitely have given them a lot of food for thought. I love the idea, sorry. I love the idea of them upgrading the food experience, not just one product. so not just the egg salad sandwich. I think they do need to tighten execution because this is really important operationally. This is a lot to transform. And so I'd love to see more better intentional controlled pop-ups so that they can test out different versions of these food experiences.

Starting point is 00:44:54 To your point, Aaron, I think there's a lot of different things that they could do and partner with other people too to bring in, you know, just a different field. they have to lean into those made fresh hues too because like for chino who actually went to you know get an egg salad sandwich not really knowing which one was freshest is not great like you should have something that's very clear so that you can feel very confident in that and then i think the big thing that we didn't really talk about exactly but is really repricing their and repositioning the value story because for five $5.50.

Starting point is 00:45:34 I'm going to go to, you know, I'm going to go to Jimmy Johns or I'm going to go somewhere else where I can watch them do it, you know, make a sandwich. But I would love if that was part of what they transformed into is that I felt like, oh my God, a $5 sandwich for 711 is amazing, right? And it's great. So I think that they could use this as a gateway to really a kind of larger reset for 711. So I think that this is definitely a starting point. Thanks, Melissa.

Starting point is 00:46:06 Good stuff. Chino, your topic. Did we fix it? We fixed it. 7-Eleven, if you're listening, I do love your egg salad sandwiches, but we need to see better. If you're going to bring out a, you know, stand behind 10 toes on a product, make sure that you're coming, you know, full swinging there. Because there are people who are excited to try it. But I think what would be easiest for them to do right now as we are introducing a new product as we're retraining the consumer,

Starting point is 00:46:40 scrap the sandwich, move to the ice coffee. It's an easier barrier to entry and with, you know, experience and inventing yourself into the culture and partnerships and looking at how your store is set up for, again, those, you know, fresh, cues with food, I think you will have a much better output versus where you're falling flat here. There are people rooting for you. There's a lot of people going to Japan and looking to try this viral moment. And I think you can capitalize it using pop-ups. But right now, and again, you get back to basics, use the coffee as a barrier to entry, and we can take it from there.

Starting point is 00:47:25 I'm with you. I buy everything you said. Well, that's going to wrap up our 7-Eleven episode. Big thanks to Chino for teeing up this conversation and to Chino and Melissa for your amazing insights. To our listeners, our fixaholics, if it's not an inconvenience to you, please give our show a review wherever you get your podcasts. Just like 7-Eleven, all our past episodes are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. So go grab some chips, grab a giant soda, maybe an egg salad sandwich, catch up on what you missed, and we will see you next time. We hope you enjoyed this episode.

Starting point is 00:48:02 If we fixed it, you're welcome. We go into every episode somewhat cold, and nothing we say should be construed as legal advice, financial advice, or anything that would get us in trouble. All trademarks, IP, and brand elements remain property of their respective owners. Are you one of those media strategy people clicking through slides, scrolling spreadsheets?

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We Fixed It, You're Welcome - 7-Eleven’s Egg Salad Experiment

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