7-Eleven seeks buyer for Australian business

There are reports the business could be bought in a multi billions dollar deal after it first landed on Aussies shores back in 1977.

Convenience chain 7-Eleven is seeking a buyer for its Australian stores with the search expected to take a number of months, it has announced.

The retailer revealed it was in the early stages of finding someone to take over the business.

“7-Eleven has an unrivalled brand and convenience footprint in the attractive fuel and convenience market in Australia,” chairman of 7-Eleven Holdings Michael Smith said.

“The business has great momentum and a compelling strategy for growth across convenient food, the continued transformation of our total merchandise offer, digital and format innovation, and new stores.

“With such a strong platform in place, the shareholders have decided that the time is right for new ownership of the business to oversee the next phase of our growth and development.

“Across our network of stores, it’s business as usual.”

It retailer sells fuel and convenience products. Picture: Supplied.

The chain was bought to the Australia 46 years ago from the US and has been in the same family shareholder’s hands since then.

It reportedly makes about $300 a million a year, while the business is expected to fetch a whopping $3 billion when sold.

The company also brought the Starbucks coffee chain brand back to Australia in 2014.

It began as a single store in suburban Melbourne in 1977 and has grown to a network of 750 stores across Victoria, NSW, ACT, Queensland and Western Australia, said Russell Withers who was commenting on behalf of 7-Eleven’s shareholders.

7-Eleven’s sale process is expected to take a number of months. Picture: NCA NewsWire / James Gourley

He added the chain processed 250 transactions each year and employed 9000 people.

“The company has made significant progress in recent years on a number of fronts and is performing well under a highly credentialed management team, with an exciting outlook for growth,” he said.

“As such the Withers and Barlow families have decided that the time is right to review options for the future ownership of the business with a view to setting it up for future growth and success.”

Last year, 7-Eleven, which was well known for its $1 coffees and Slurpees, announced it was bumping up prices, as the service station chain buckled under the pressure of inflation.

A regular cup of coffee at the service station will doubled in price from October 4, becoming $2, while large coffees increased to $3 and super cups to $3.50.

Other well known Aussie businesses have been sold in recent times. Picture: Supplied

A slew of other Australian brands have been sold in recent times including much-loved Aussie vitamin brand Blackmores, which is set to be taken over by a major Japanese firm as part of a takeover deal worth a staggering $1.88 billion.

David Jones was been bought by an private equity firm at the end of 2022 just years after it was sold to another company for billions.

Australian private equity firm Anchorage Capital Partners acquired the iconic brand from previous owners, South African-based Woolworths Holdings Limited.

Neither company confirmed the sale figure, but The Australian reported the business was sold for $100 million, much lower than the $2.1 billion Woolworths purchased it for in 2014.

Originally published as 7-Eleven seeks buyer for Australian business