Seven & I Holdings tops the list with over 40,455 stores worldwide. This retail giant owns the 7-Eleven convenience store brand and the Ito-Yokado supermarket chain. Headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan, Seven & I Holdings was established on September 1, 2005, following the merger of three companies: Ito-Yokado, Seven-Eleven Japan, and Denny’s Japan.
The next two spots on the list are also occupied by Japanese companies, FamilyMart and Lawson. Each company currently boasts over 20,000 stores globally. In comparison, the largest US retailer, Walmart, operates 10,569 stores worldwide. Coming in at fourth place is Thailand’s CP All, a convenience store chain with 16,042 locations across the globe.
In Europe, German food retailer Schwarz Group leads the way with 14,112 stores in 30 countries. Closely following is French supermarket giant Carrefour with 14,014 stores.
Ranking eighth is the Canadian retailer Couche-Tard, with stores primarily located in North America and Europe. Since 2004, the company has completed over 60 acquisitions, including the purchase of 2,200 fuel stations from French energy company TotalEnergies in 2023. Couche-Tard also owns the Circle-K brand, which operates in 24 countries worldwide.
