In a press release, CP ALL Laos, a master franchisee of 7-Eleven International, which is a joint venture between 7-Eleven, Inc. and Seven-Eleven Japan, opened its first 7-Eleven store in Laos. The store is located in the capital city of Vientiane.

“CP ALL Laos is excited to serve the community of Vientiane as it experiences significant economic growth and surge in tourism following the opening of the Laos-China Railway high-speed train,” according to the release.

The store features 7-Eleven's signature retail model and serves a variety of internationally-popular products and beverages–including bean-to-cup coffee and Slurpee and Big Gulp drinks. Customers can enjoy hamburgers, toasted sandwiches and freshly baked bread. CP ALL Laos is looking into opportunities to offer Laotian meals.

"With its thriving economy and growing population, Laos offers an excellent environment for 7‑Eleven's first retail venture in the region," said 7-Eleven International Co-CEOs Shin Abe and Ken Wakabayashi. "Our entrance into the country brings Laotian customers a one-stop-shop solution with quality fresh food and convenience needs, via a store format not currently prevalent in the market. The store opening in Laos marks the 20th country and region for 7-Eleven. We are excited to continue to provide citizens and tourists alike with world-class convenience."

Meanwhile, in the Guangdong province of China, WeChat Pay announced that its palm payment service is now available at over 1,500 7-Eleven convenience stores. Currently, users wanting to use the payment method can activate it on WeChat’s digital payment devices in offline 7-Eleven stores. Once activated, users will be able to pay by simply placing their palms above a palm-reading device in the participating stores.

Earlier this year, Panera Bread began testing Amazon’s palm-scanning technology in two locations. The identification technology, dubbed Amazon One, is already used in dozens of Amazon-owned Whole Foods locations, Amazon Go stores and some stadiums and arenas.