7-Eleven plans to close 645 stores across North America

7-Eleven plans to close 645 convenience stores in North America over the next fiscal year — the most aggressive round of cutbacks yet for a chain that has been shrinking its footprint for half a decade.

Seven & i Holdings, the chain’s Japanese parent company, also recently pushed back a highly anticipated stock market debut until at least 2027.

The announcements were both made as part of the company’s earnings release on April 9.

According to Seven & i’s earnings documents, 7-Eleven, Inc., the U.S. arm of the chain, expects to close 645 retail locations in its current fiscal year while opening just 205 — a net loss of 440 stores. Some of those locations will not disappear entirely: the parent company said some closures will happen because of conversion to wholesale fuel stores, a model that keeps a location operating as a gas supplier without the retail staff and overhead of a full convenience store.

The closures would make fiscal year 2026 the fifth year in a row that the company has closed more stores than it opened.

7-Eleven did not release a list of stores it is planning to close. 

The chain already had a tough stretch in recent years. 7-Eleven closed 373 North American stores in fiscal 2025 — and 474 the year before that.

Even as it closes hundreds of locations, 7-Eleven plans to invest heavily in a new format: larger stores with expanded food menus, seating areas and, in many cases, fuel stations. The chain has set a goal of opening 1,300 new-format North American stores by 2030.

The strategy mirrors a broader shift across the convenience store industry, where chains like Wawa and Casey’s General Stores have built loyal followings — and strong sales — by competing more aggressively on fresh, made-to-order food.