DALLAS – For those who have served in the U.S. Armed Forces, 7-Eleven Inc. has something in store with its franchise competition.
7-Eleven is recruiting qualified men and women who have been honorably discharged to enlist in the company’s second Operation: Take Command competition. One deserving veteran will be awarded a 7-Eleven fee-free franchise, a value of up to $190,000.
The winner can choose any of the company’s 7-Eleven convenience stores available in the continental U.S. at the contest’s culmination. Interested veterans can enter online now through Feb. 26, 2016. The winner will be announced in June.
“More than 6,000 ex-military men and women applied last year, and 1,700 were vetted in our first Operation: Take Command campaign,” said Greg Franks, 7-Eleven vice president of franchise systems. “The finalists were outstanding, and many who didn’t win still took command of their careers and moved forward through our normal qualification process to own their own 7-Eleven franchise.”
The Operation: Take Command initiative is a multiphased competition that includes meeting 7-Eleven’s franchising qualifications and successful interviews. The top 25 will be invited to submit a video on why they deserve a 7-Eleven franchise. Up to seven will be selected from this pool for the semifinal competition.
Through votes on 7-Eleven’s Facebook page, the public will select three finalists to be interviewed by 7-Eleven’s franchise department management and narrowed to one winner.
To qualify for Operation: Take Command, an entrant must be age 21 or older, a U.S. citizen or permanent resident, an honorably discharged veteran, have excellent credit and have at least three years of leadership, retail or restaurant experience. Contestants will go through the same qualification process as all 7-Eleven franchise applicants, including credit evaluation, a leadership test, business plan development, budget and store location preferences.
Last year’s winners in 7-Eleven’s inaugural Operation: Take Command are now in business for themselves in stores of their choice. Mark Anthony Page, a Navy veteran, franchises a 7-Eleven store in Burleson, Texas. Salil Gautam, formerly with the U.S. Army, operates his store in Norfolk, Va., and Army reservist Robert Kemna recently took the reins of his new 7-Eleven store in Miami.
7-Eleven already offers qualified veterans who have left the military within the past five years a discount of 20 percent on the franchise fee for their first 7-Eleven store, a value of up to $50,000, along with preferred interest rates and special financing. Those who have been out of the military longer receive a 10 percent franchise fee discount.
Multiple veteran organizations continue to recognize 7-Eleven for its military-friendly business opportunities, hiring practices and philanthropic support for military families. This year marks 7-Eleven’s 52nd year of franchising. Today, franchisees operate approximately 85% of 7-Eleven’s nearly 8,000 U.S. stores. An interactive map indicates stores available for franchising.