FamilyMart To Buy Smaller Rival am/pm

FamilyMart Co. , the nation's No.3 convenience store operator, has agreed to purchase smaller rival am/pm Japan Co. for more than 10 billion yen, according to Nikkei. FamilyMart, which has around 7,600 locations throughout Japan, sees the acquisition boosting its competitiveness to overtake the top ranked Seven-Eleven and No2 Lawson. am/pm owns roughly 1,100 stores with about 70% located in the growing Tokyo market. Earlier this year Lawson agreed to purchase am/pm but abandoned those plans due to demands by the US trademark owner, am/pm international Inc., that a majority of the stores retain the brand name.