7-Eleven Fattens Up Belly Partnership

DALLAS – 7-Eleven Inc. is partnering with loyalty platform Belly to offer shoppers rewards for repeat purchases, according to media reports. Belly is expected to be in place at more than a quarter of 7-Eleven stores in the United States and Canada, or 2,600 locations, by the end of the year.

7-Eleven first invested in Belly through its 7-Ventures program in 2013, as CSNews Online previously reported.<!--pagebreak-->

Retailers can set up marketing campaigns through the Belly platform, which automates promotions based on data and insights on consumer behavior, while customers can use the Belly mobile app or universal BellyCard to earn rewards points for visiting any business that is part of the Belly network.<!--pagebreak-->

The new 7-Eleven partnership expands Belly's presence in major cities such as Chicago, Los Angeles and other locations in the Northeast, as well as Austin, Texas, and Vancouver, British Columbia. It will also bring the loyalty program to smaller communities where it hadn't yet established itself due to the widespread nature of 7-Eleven's footprint.

Belly CEO Logan LaHive said the agreement with 7-Eleven "accelerates our growth," but "doesn't change our core strategy."

More than 3 million consumers have downloaded the Belly mobile app, which lets them use a personal QR code to interact with an iPad screen that Belly places in participating stores, the company said.