Saban Express, owned by entrepreneurs Udi Saada and Assaf Kamari, purchased the stores from Electra Consumer Products in 2023 and rebranded them under its own name. However, the venture failed to gain traction, and several locations — including the flagship store at Tel Aviv's Dizengoff Center and branches in Sarona-Kaplan and Lilienblum — have already shuttered. A “for rent” sign now hangs on the closed Dizengoff location.
The original eight stores, which 7-Eleven operated in Israel for less than a year, were primarily located in Tel Aviv, with additional locations in Petah Tikva and Hod Hasharon. Electra had invested around 4 million shekels (about $1 million) in each branch and ultimately recorded cumulative losses in the tens of millions of shekels before selling the operation to Saban Express.
One factor cited in the chain’s failure is the saturation of Israel’s convenience store market. Despite introducing American-style offerings such as self-serve ice cream, coffee, slush drinks and hot dogs, local consumers reportedly saw little value in the concept.
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In a statement, Saban Express said it had conducted a performance review and made targeted changes in response to evolving retail market demands. “Stores that failed to meet cost and productivity targets have ceased operations for now,” the company said. “We plan to reopen some branches in a new format that will split the retail space between Saban Express and food franchise partners.”
The company said it is focusing on economically viable locations and will not continue operating stores that do not justify their costs.