CP All Plc, the operator of 7-Eleven convenience stores in Thailand, will expand into Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam as it seeks to benefit from an integrated Asean market beginning in 2015.
Managing director Piyawat Titasattavorakul confirmed that the company has submitted a proposal to 7-Eleven's parent company to open stores in four of Thailand's neighboring countries. It is the next step after CP won approval to open 7-Eleven outlets in China by the end of 2013 or early 2014.
Piyawat said he is confident that CP All will be allowed to operate 7-Eleven stores in one city near Shanghai by the end of this year after several years of waiting. He had no further details of investment plans in China but is certain about the market opportunity there, which is expected to be twice of the size of Thailand.
Good business performance in Thailand has given the firm confidence to expand into China., he explained. Though 450 to 500 new 7-Eleven stores are opened in Thailand every year, sales from existing stores grew at an average of 10.9% in 2012, the highest growth rate for 7-Eleven in the world. An average of 1,234 customers visit each 7-Eleven store in Thailand daily, compared with 1,052 in Japan and 920 in the US.
