The convenience-store chain adopted the name 7-Eleven in 1946. Before that change, the stores were known as Tote’m Stores, a name connected to the idea that customers could tote purchases away.
The new name highlighted the stores’ extended opening hours: 7 a.m. to 11 p.m., seven days a week. Those hours were unusually long for the period and became a direct selling point for the developing convenience-store format.
The business traces its origins to Southland Ice Company stores in Texas, which began selling everyday goods alongside ice. Over time, longer hours, standardized operations, and franchising helped the chain expand far beyond its original market.
The name should not be interpreted as a claim that every 7-Eleven store has always followed exactly those hours. Modern locations often operate 24 hours or follow local schedules, but the historic name refers specifically to the 1946 operating-hours concept.