Why One Long-Time 7-Eleven Wasn’t Part of Dallas-Based Chain’s Growth Strategy

Dallas-based 7-Eleven’s in the midst of a major expansion in Northern California, and, last we looked, the oh-thank-heavens was looking “to accelerate store development over the next several years through organic growth” in the DFW and elsewhere cross the country. (In ’08, shortly after the chain shuttered its Knox-Travis hot spot, it announced a 300-store benchmark for the DFW.) But a couple of nights ago, I was out and about and pulled into the Preston Royal Shopping Center to grab a late-night coffee at the 7-Eleven, which has been there since I was a kid. (Update: A Friend of Unfair Park in the real estate business says that location’s been there at least 50 years.) The place was boarded up, as evidenced by this terrible photo.

7-Eleven spokesperson Margaret Chabris says that location actually shuttered a few weeks ago — which goes to show how popular it was. Why the closing after all the years? Easy, she says: “It wasn’t going to be part of our long-term store base because it wasn’t making the kind of money it needed to.” The reasons: “It wasn’t facing the street, it didn’t have gasoline, and it was a much smaller store. We decided we’re going to put our growth money into other locations. We’ve got a new location under construction at the corner of Forest Lane and Central Expressway, and we have the store at Preston Road and Forest.”