This picture taken on December 25, 2014 shows Seven & i Holdings Chairman and CEO Toshifumi Suzuki.Former chairman of Seven & i Holdings Toshifumi Suzuki, credited for the global success of 7-Eleven convenience stores, has died at the age of 93, the company said on May 25, 2026. — Jiji Press via AFP pic (New users only) It's tax relief season! Get up to RM300 when you save with Versa! Plus, enjoy an additional FREE RM10 when you sign up using code VERSAMM10 with a min. cash-in of RM100 today. T&Cs apply. Tuesday, 26 May 2026 7:00 AM MYT TOKYO, May 26 — Former chairman of Seven & i Holdings Toshifumi Suzuki, credited for the global success of 7-Eleven convenience stores, has died at the age of 93, the company said yesterday.Suzuki “passed away due to heart failure on May 18,” the company said in a statement, adding: “We would like to express our deepest gratitude for the kindness shown to him during his lifetime and respectfully inform you of his passing.”Suzuki is known for opening the first 7-Eleven store in Japan in 1974 and growing the business into the world’s largest convenience store chain, including through turning the struggling US headquarters into a subsidiary of the Japanese company and rebuilding it.He is known as the “father of the convenience store” in Japan. — AFP