Dive Brief:
- Seven & i Holdings, parent of 7-Eleven, has received a buyout proposal from one of its executives along with one of its largest shareholders, the company announced on Wednesday.
- The shareholder, Ito-Kogyo Co., is a private company affiliated with Junro Ito, Seven & i’s vice president and representative director. Ito is also the son of Masatoshi Ito, founder of Seven & i’s Ito-Yokado supermarket chain. The buyout price was not disclosed, although Bloomberg reported it may be around $58 billion.
- Ito-Kogyo’s bid for Seven & i comes as the world’s largest c-store retailer resists a takeover attempt by Alimentation Couche-Tard, parent company of Circle K convenience stores. After rejecting a $39 billion bid in early September, Seven & i received a revised offer from Couche-Tard last month, which Bloomberg reported could be as high as $47 billion.
Dive Insight:
Seven & i said during Couche-Tard’s initial takeover bid that no deal is guaranteed to happen and that it will continue focusing on growing its business and revenues. Currently, those growth plans in North America include opening over 600 convenience stores under a new large-format, food-focused design.
With regards to Ito-Kogyo’s bid, Seven & i once again emphasized that message.
Stephen Hayes Dacus, chair of the special committee and board of directors for Seven & i, added that the company is “committed to an objective review of all alternatives” as it considers both Ito-Kogyo’s and Couche-Tard’s offers.
“The Special Committee and the Company Board will continue to engage with all parties in a manner designed to maximize value and will continue to act in the best interests of the Company’s shareholders and other stakeholders,” Hayes Dacus said in Wednesday’s announcement.
Seven & i said on Wednesday that Junro Ito, who has been with the company since 1990, has been excluded from all discussions relating to any potential sale, whether with Ito-Kogyo or Couche-Tard.
Ito-Kogyo owns over 8% of Seven & i stock, making it the company’s second-largest shareholder, according to Seven & i’s data. The Japanese company is a wholesale distributor of petroleum and petroleum products.
