National 7-Eleven Day is observed annually on July 11. July 11 is the day that 7-Eleven convenience stores reserve special deals for their customers. And since this year is the Slurpee’s 50th birthday, it’s an extra special year. Watch for promotions at your local 7-Eleven.
HOW TO OBSERVE
Go to your local 7-Eleven and get a free Slurpee in your favorite flavor. Share on social media and include #National7-ElevenDay
HISTORY
The earliest advertised 7-Eleven Day in 1989 encouraged customers to visit their local 7-Eleven to enjoy a free beverage as a thank you to the 7-Eleven customers. The company which is considered the first convenience store which started in 1927 under the name of Southland Ice Company with the logo Totem, because people could conveniently “tote ’em” home their items.
From Convenience Store News:
A convenience store retailer may be content if a new product or promotion is successful for a season; perhaps even a year or two. So, it’s a remarkable feat that the invention of a Kansas hamburger stand owner — who in 1959 used an automobile air conditioner to create a sophisticated piece of equipment that would freeze a carbonated soft drink and serve it sherbet-like, edible via a straw — would stand the test of time.
This product, first called Icee when it began to be sold in 7-Eleven stores in 1965, has not only survived, but thrived. In fact, it has become one of the most recognizable products in the entire convenience store universe.
In May 1967, this famous product would be renamed the Slurpee — making this year the iconic beverage’s 50th year. The Slurpee name was the brainchild of the Stanford Agency, 7-Eleven’s in-house agency at the time. The name came from Stanford Agency Director Bob Stanford who commented that the frozen treat made a “slurp” sound as it came up through the straw.
