7-eleven can be found in the republic of korea convenience store market in many places, where it competes with ministop, gs25 (formerly lg25), familymart, and independent competitors. there are 7,064 7-eleven stores in the republic of korea; with only japan, the united states, and thailand hosting more stores. the first 7-eleven store in the republic of korea opened in 1989 in songpa-gu in seoul with a franchise license under the lotte group. in january 2010, lotte group acquired the buy the way convenience store chain and rebranded its 1,000 stores under the 7-eleven brand.