Retailer introduces fresh-brewed iced tea in 3,000 stores.
7-Eleven Inc. is brewing something fresh this summer to quench the thirst of Big Gulp fans. The convenience retailer is introducing fresh-brewed iced tea, available in either sweetened or unsweetened flavors, at more than 3,000 participating 7-Eleven stores.
Stores where the fresh-brewed iced tea is available are located in Florida, Virginia, the greater Southern California, Dallas-Fort Worth and Austin, Texas; Denver and Colorado Springs, Colo., southern Nevada, Salt Lake City, Utah, and Charlotte, N.C., areas, plus select stores on Long Island, N.Y.
To celebrate National Iced Tea Day on Tuesday, June 10, and its newest brewed beverage, 7-Eleven will offer a free Big Gulp iced tea drink e-coupon on its smartphone app for that day (June 10) only. The e-coupon is available only in locations where 7-Eleven stores offer the fresh-brewed iced tea.
“More than half of the people who visit a 7-Eleven store buy something to drink,” said Nancy Smith, 7-Eleven senior vice president of fresh food and proprietary beverage merchandising. “Fresh-brewed iced tea provides a refreshing, non-carbonated cold beverage option for our guests as we head into the hot summer months. However, even after the temperatures cool, we expect it will become a year-round favorite.”
Both varieties are made with a proprietary blend of black tea leaves, created exclusively for 7-Eleven stores. Brewed fresh throughout the day, sweetened and unsweetened Big Gulp Iced Teas are dispensed from lined, stainless-steel urns located in the cold-beverage section of the store.
“Iced tea is the second-most consumed beverage in U.S. restaurants,” Smith said. “7-Eleven already carried ready-to-drink bottled teas, but as we continue to expand both our fresh and hot food menus, we wanted to add a fresh-brewed, over-ice option to our guests’ beverage choices.”
Next to water, tea is the most consumed beverage in the world. According to the Tea Association of the USA, more than half of Americans drink tea on any given day. Of the approximately 80 billion servings of tea drunk each day, 85% is iced. In recent years, the association reports that away-from-home consumption of tea has increased by double digits annually over the past decade.
7-Eleven also is introducing fresh-brewed iced coffee under its Chillers brand simultaneously with the iced tea launch. Available in the same stores, iced coffee is sold in 7-Eleven Chillers cups rather than Big Gulp cups.
The free 7-Eleven smartphone app can be downloaded at the iPhone App Store and Google Play for Android.
