Japan's convenience store owners eye shorter hours, closures for New Year

Japan's major convenience store operators are exploring reduced holiday hours amid a labor shortage and rising public awareness about overwork issues, with Seven-Eleven Japan Co. and Lawson Inc. closing some of their outlets on New Year's Day as an experiment to gauge consumer reaction.Seven-Eleven will close about 50 convenience stores in the Tokyo metropolitan area on Wednesday and shorten business hours on Thursday and Friday during Japan's three-day New Year holidays.But the experiment will not involve any outlets run by franchise owners. Some who have been critical of Seven-Eleven's 24…READ FULL ARTICLE