Seven & i holdings, the parent company of convenience store chain 7-Eleven, is reportedly planning to replace its president, Ryuichi Isaka, with its current outside director, Stephen Hayes Dacus, following a failed takeover bid. File Photo by Andrew Gombert/EPA-EFE
The Japanese parent company of convenience store chain 7-Eleven is reportedly preparing for its current president, Ryuichi Isaka, to step down, with its outside director, Stephen Hayes Dacus, poised to take his place.
Sources familiar with the plans confirmed to Nikkei, The Asahi Shimbun and Kyodo News that Isaka will retire as president of the Seven & i Holdings Co. after the company’s founding family failed to raise adequate money for an attempted management buyout. Advertisement
Shares of Seven & i fell more than 12% after news broke that Japanese trading house Itochu Corp. had backed out of supporting the management buyout. Charoen Pokphand Group, which operates 7-Eleven stores in Thailand, earlier announced it would not participate in the plan.
The failed buyout was an attempt to stave off a $47 billion acquisition offer from Canadian firm Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc., which owns convenience store chains including Circle K.
Dacus, the current outside director of Seven & i and former CEO of Japanese supermarket chain Seiyu Co., is expected to take over as company president, sources told Japanese media.
Isaka has served as president of Seven & i since 2016, with his accomplishments including the acquisition of Speedway convenience stores in 2021 and the sale of subsidiary Sogo & Seibu Co. In 2023. Advertisement
