Toshifumi Suzuki: Founder of Seven-Eleven Japan dies at 93 | World | News

Toshifumi Suzuki, the founder of Seven-Eleven Japan and considered the father of Japan’s convenience store industry, died of heart failure on May 18, Seven & i Holdings 3382.T said in a statement on Monday. He was 93 years old. Born in Nagano in 1932, Suzuki worked for a book wholesaler before joining retailer Ito-Yokado in 1963.

Defying skepticism at the time, Suzuki partnered with 7-Eleven’s US operator Southland Corp to open Seven-Eleven Japan in 1973, opening its first store in Tokyo the following year. He pioneered the use of data to tailor inventory and helped make convenience stores a cornerstone of Japan’s retail landscape by creating a business model focused on fast food and rapid inventory turnover.

Suzuki also led the successful restructuring and rescue of Southland in the early 1990s after 7-Eleven’s parent company filed for bankruptcy due to massive debt from a leveraged buyout.

Suzuki founded Seven & i Holdings in 2005 and oversaw its expansion into a retail conglomerate.

The avid book reader stepped down as president in 2016 but remained an influential figure in Japan’s retail industry.

His business acumen led him to be called the “god of retail” in his country.

There are currently approximately 80,000 7-Eleven stores worldwide, and the chain is the largest convenience store brand in Japan.

Convenience stores, or ‘konbini’ as they are known in Japan, are seemingly ubiquitous in the Asian country, supplying shoppers with everything from hot meals to clothing.

Other well-known chains in the country are Family Mart and Lawson.