Seven & i Holdings’ Stephen Dacus gives New Year’s address on year ahead
Stephen Dacus, president & CEO of Seven & i Holdings Co., Ltd., parent company of 7-Eleven, began 2026 by addressing some of the challenges ahead for the Japanese retail conglomerate.
In a letter released today to the media and the company’s employees worldwide, Dacus said the company and its executives and global team leaders have “strengthened our governance framework and alignment across our businesses, built greater discipline into our execution, and started to move faster as one global 7-Eleven team.”
Going into 2026, Dacus said that inflationary pressures remain elevated, pushing the company’s customer to become increasingly value conscious.
“They are thinking more carefully about where and how they spend their money and are becoming more selective about what they purchase, as they balance rising prices with their everyday needs,” he added.
While growing geopolitical risks and an increasing number of natural disasters impacting people, Dacus says “our strong product development capabilities, our unparalleled store network, and our powerful partnerships with franchise owners and business partners are significant strengths. Above all, the dedication of our employees, who engage with our customers every day, is our greatest competitive advantage and the key to winning in a challenging environment.”
“Looking ahead to 2026 and beyond, our direction is clear. To accelerate our global growth, we will focus on four key areas: delivering value that exceeds our customers’ expectations, strengthening digital convenience and the last-mile experience, advancing our food leadership, and cost control. Our objective is to be the customer’s first choice for convenience—anywhere, anytime. To achieve this, we must be fully committed and maintain an unwavering focus on our customers’ perspective in everything we do.”
Dacus says that to accomplish this, the company and its 7-Eleven convenience operations worldwide will need to anticipate change and get ahead of customer needs, “creating new experiences and behaviours.”
“This is how 7-Eleven became what it is today.,” he added. “And this is how we will define the next chapter of our history. This commitment to change also applies to ourselves. To be a trusted brand that can grow globally, we need a shared culture. With this in mind, we are redefining what it means to be 7-Eleven as a global brand and driving the cultural transformation needed to accelerate our global growth.”
READ: Seven & i Holdings looks to transform under changing market conditions
Just before the holiday season, 7-Eleven, Inc. (SEI) announced that Joe DePinto, who has served as CEO of 7-Eleven, Inc. for more than twenty years, would retire from his position, effective as of the end of this year.
Stanley (Stan) Reynolds, currently president of 7-Eleven, Inc., and Douglas (Doug) Rosencrans, executive vice-president & COO were appointed Interim Co-CEOs and would serve in this capacity until a successor to DePinto is appointed.
"On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank Joe for his more than two decades of dedicated service and wish him well in the future. As CEO of SEI, he has led the significant expansion of the Group's International and U.S. store network and its digital and logistics transformation, helping grow 7-Eleven into the world's largest convenience store chain," said Dacus, upon the announcement of DePinto’s retirement.
Dacus added, "Our group is currently moving forward with a series of transformational leadership, capital, and business initiatives to enhance our performance, ensure disciplined stewardship of resources, and drive corporate and shareholder value creation. We strive to find, through a thorough selection process, the right person who can lead SEI and help us work even more closely together as one group. Our goal is to further advance our transformation efforts, unlock SEI's full potential, redefine convenience, and bring the 7-Eleven experience to even more customers across the North American market."
"Serving as 7-Eleven's CEO for the past 20 years and working alongside such an incredibly talented team has been the honor of my professional life. I want to sincerely thank all our Franchise Owners, company team members and business partners for their extraordinary commitment to 7-Eleven over the years. I'm grateful to all who have supported 7-Eleven and me the past two decades and helped grow this brand and our business into what it is today," DePinto said.
