Initiate and Lead Applied Research for 7-Eleven Stores Pty Ltd.

Running head: INITIATE AND LEAD APPLIED RESEARCH
Initiate and Lead Applied Research
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1INITIATE AND LEAD APPLIED RESEARCH
1. Introduction
7-Eleven Stores Pty Ltd. is one of the major convenience chain stores in Australia. The
private company is owned by the Withers and Barlow family. According to the report by IBIS
World (2018), 7-Eleven holds 117th position among the top 2000 companies in Australia. The
major source of income of this company is food retailing. It has been found that the company
does not focus much on the marketing programs, which is a key factor in the competitive market
to expand its size. This paper presents a research brief on conducting a research for 7-Eleven to
analyze its market and recommend ways to increase the size of its target market.
2. Market and strategic overview
7-Eleven was first opened in August 1977 in Australia. It has it’s headquarter in
Melbourne and currently operates over 670 stores across all the states and territories in Australia
(7eleven.com.au, 2018). It is one of the most popular convenience stores in the country.
According to the features of convenience stores, 7-Eleven fulfills the needs of the customers
regarding basic things. The store can serve the changing needs of the customers on the go. The
stores are mostly located near the downtowns or central business districts and on the highways,
to cater the needs of the office goers and tourists. It stores brands like Slurpee Beverages, Krispy
Kreme Doughnuts, $1 coffee, Hot Chockee, Treats, Refreshment beverages, such as, energy
drinks, Juice, soft drinks, Sports drinks, etc., 7-Eleven Fuel, BankWest ATM Facilities,
Stationery & Gifts, Game Cards, MoneyGram, 7-Eleven Branded Top-Ups (Milk, Bread, Pet
Food, Toothpaste, Frozen Meals, Cleaning Products, Soft Drinks & Ice Creams), News,
Magazines & Entertainment, Transport Tickets & Top-Ups, Personal Care & Cleaning, Auto &
Car Care and many more (Ibisworld.com.au., 2018). These product and service range were
chosen such that the customers can get the most basic things under one roof in a convenient

2INITIATE AND LEAD APPLIED RESEARCH
place rather than driving to the big supermarkets, especially while travelling on a highway. It
also offers the fuel and delis which enables the customers to grab food while filling up the gas.
The key competitors of 7-Eleven are the big supermarkets of Australia, such as, Coles,
Woolworths, and other convenience stores such as EzyMart, NightOwl Convenience Stores etc.
and some stores operated by the gas companies like, Exxon Mobil, Shell etc.
(Ausfoodnews.com.au, 2012).
Since beginning, 7-Eleven has focused on providing a wide range of items including
packaged foods, fuel, ATM services, and other type of necessary products and services for the
customers at their convenient locations (7eleven.com.au, 2018). Over the years, it has expanded
its range of products to meet the needs of the not only the local residents but also for the tourists.
To conduct the research on the issues regarding the market size of 7-Eleven, the target
market will consist of customers and employees of the company. 3 stores will be selected in and
around Melbourne, and a survey will be conducted on some of the customers and employees of
each store. Geographical segmentation will be beneficial for cultural context as the customers
groups will include the international tourists as well. These segmentations would also help in
understanding the social and economic implications as a certain percentage of the customer
group is price sensitive, and affects the sales of 7-Eleven. Apart from that, the regulations,
seasonal sales, pricing and communication, which is not emphasized by the company will also be
considered for the research.
3. Background and role of the research
The research will focus on the development of marketing programs for 7-Eleven. As it
does not spend much or not aggressively promoting its brand, the company is losing out some of

3INITIATE AND LEAD APPLIED RESEARCH
its market share in the competitive world. Hence, the research will be carried out to find out the
customers and the employees perceptions regarding the products and services and to evaluate the
scopes of improvement. The need for marketing will also be assessed through the research. This
will help 7-Eleven to plan and implement measures to develop a marketing program. Marketing
or promotional activities are important for reaching to a wider audience and to increase its
popularity, the company must focus on marketing activities.
The research will impact the marketing and PR department of 7-Eleven the most,
followed by the finance and accounts department. The employees and supervisors of those
departments will be involved in developing the marketing program and sales department will
also be involved for in-store promotional activities. The customers of 3 stores will be involved to
collect the data on the stores’ products and services as well as on the impact of promotional
activities.
The research work might face some constraints in terms of communicating with the
customers regarding the purpose of the research, voluntary participation from the customer
groups, accuracy of data, budget, and access to the secondary data, such as, the annual reports
etc. to get the statistics on the market position of the company.
4. Objectives
4.1 Business objectives
The mission of 7-Eleven Australia is to be the best in the country in meeting the dynamic
needs of the convenience customers. Its vision is to maintain its position as the first choice of the
customers in terms of the customer preference and achieve market share through sustainable
growth while maintaining the highest level of ethics (7eleven.com.au., 2018). 7-Eleven operates