TOKYO - Masatoshi Ito, the founder of Japan's Ito-Yokado retail group that became the holding company of 7-Eleven convenience stores, has died at the age of 98, Seven & i Holdings Co. said on Monday.
Ito served as honorary chairman of Seven & i Holdings, which operates about 80,000 stores worldwide, including 7-Eleven shops and the Speedway convenience store chain in the United States. The company dates back to 1920 when Ito's uncle opened a clothing store named Yokado in Tokyo, and the group reorganized under the Seven & I brand in 2005.
The company has been under pressure from US investor ValueAct Capital to sell off low-performing assets, and recently the fund urged shareholders to back a spin-off of the 7-Eleven chain.
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