1. A convenience store chain attempts to be responsive and provide customers what they need, when they need it, where they need it. What are some different ways that a convenience store supply chain can be responsive? What are some risks in each case?

As responsiveness increases, the convenience store chain is exposed to greater uncertainty. A convenience store chain can improve responsiveness to this uncertainty using one of the following strategies, especially for fresh and fast foods:

1. Local Capacity. The convenience store chain can provide local cooking capacity at the stores and assemble foods almost on demand. Inventory would be stored as raw material. This is seen at the U.S. fast-food restaurant franchise Subway where dinner and lunch sandwiches are assembled on demand. The main risk with this approach is that capacity is decentralized, leading to poorer utilization.

2. Local Inventory Another approach is to have all inventory available at the store at all times. This allows for the centralization of cooking capacity. The main risk is obsolete inventory and the need for extra space.

3. Rapid Replenishment Another approach is to set up rapid replenishment and supply the stores with what they need when they need it. This allows for centralization of cooking capacity and low levels of inventory, but increases the cost of replenishment and receiving.

From the case study, Seven-eleven Japan Co. had provided their customers a variety of service that is difference responsive way from usual convenience store concept.

1. 7dream.com

Seven-Eleven Japan established an e-commerce company which their customer can choose the product at home and pick the product at the store. Because from the survey, 92% of its customers preferred to pick up their online purchase at the local convenience store rather than have them delivered at home. Since Seven-Eleven Japan have the distribution system that conforms with these drop and pick up system. So Seven-Eleven serve as drop-off and collection points for Japanese people. Instead of providing customers at that time the need is happen, the customers can choose the product at home and then pick up the product later at the store.  The risk of this case is normally Seven-Eleven Japan established this system as a way to derive benefit from the existing distribution system. If in the future this system is popular among the Japanese, the capacity of the existing distribution system may not be enough to serve the customers such as a space to storage the goods waiting for customers to pick up (the store in Japan is smaller than other country)

2. In-Store Payment

Instead of selling household goods, food and groceries, a convenience store can be responsive as a payment spot. Seven-Eleven Japan add a variety of services that customers can obtain at its stores for example an in-store payment of Tokyo Electric Power bills, gas, insurance premiums, and telephone. In order to attracted millions of additional customers every year and take advantage of opening hour and number of stores to service customer.

The risk of this case is when the company adopt this service every Seven-Eleven store Japan have to link with the data of the payment such as electric bill. If the employees not fully understand how the system works, he or she will misunderstand and take too long to serve customer. Result in lower customer satisfaction and can link to overall brand dissatisfaction. Some customer will stop buying at Seven-Eleven because the long waiting time.