There was a time when I liked 7/11 fuel stations. The new guy on the block, slightly cheaper fuel, some American candy on the shelves. Staffed by locals who were almost always friendly.

What happened? Who knows.

7/11 recently purchases 295 Mobil fuel stations, and are slowly in process of converting them. Not a single Mobil fuelstation remains untouched. Some are already fully converted. I say converted, not re-branded, because the process requires complete shutdown of the site, with a large amount of site-work.

Take the site closest to my house, for instance. There is a lot of structural work. The building is no longer the same size or shape that it was previously (it it considerably larger now).

I’ve been wondering if 7/11 fuel stations have light switches, because as soon as the power is reconnected to the site, everything lights up. I’m sure the place is still a week or two from re-opening, but all the fleuro lights int he signboards are on, all the new 7/11 signage is fully lit, and all the lights inside the shop and in the fridges are also on. Even the sign out the front with the fuel prices is displaying 7.11 (No, that’s not $7.11 per liter..).

I am also curious if our old corner service station is to become a 24 hour outlet, as a lot (all?) of 7/11 stores seem to be.

Will a 24 hour 7/11 work in this little-traveled corner of town, when a kilometer or two away on the highway, there are three of them? Who knows.

Their $1 coffee sign is intriguing me, and I think I might try a cup of their coffee.

My mind has not changed about boycotting them because of what they are doing with their staff (article here), and I intend to stick by that, unless this store turns out to be different.