is a chain of company-operated and franchised

Franchising

Franchising is the practice of using another firm's successful business model. The word 'franchise' is of anglo-French derivation - from franc- meaning free, and is used both as a noun and as a verb....

 convenience store

Convenience store

A convenience store, corner store, corner shop, commonly called a bodega in Spanish-speaking areas of the United States, is a small store or shop in a built up area that stocks a range of everyday items such as groceries, toiletries, alcoholic and soft drinks, and may also offer money order and...

s in Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

. The company is a division of UNY Co., Ltd., which licensed the Circle K

Circle K

Circle K is an international chain of convenience stores, founded in 1951, in El Paso, Texas, United States. It is owned and operated by the Canadian-based Alimentation Couche-Tard.-Overview:...

 name from Alimentation Couche-Tard

Alimentation Couche-Tard

Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. or simply Couche-Tard is one of the largest company-owned convenience store operators in the world with up to 6,000 stores across Canada, the United States, Mexico, Japan, China, Indonesia and Guam....

, a Canadian

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 convenience store company that owns the Circle K brand.

The typical Japanese convenience store goods such as magazines, manga

Manga

Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...

, soft drinks, contraceptives, onigiri

Onigiri

, also known as or rice ball, is a Japanese food made from white rice formed into triangular or oval shapes and often wrapped in nori . Traditionally, an onigiri is filled with pickled ume , salted salmon, katsuobushi, kombu, tarako, or any other salty or sour ingredient as a natural preservative...

 and bento

Bento

is a single-portion takeout or home-packed meal common in Japanese cuisine. A traditional bento consists of rice, fish or meat, and one or more pickled or cooked vegetables, usually in a box-shaped container. Containers range from disposable mass produced to hand crafted lacquerware...

 are available.

History

Sunkus and Circle K Japan formed an equity and business alliance in October of 1998.

The franchiser, Sunkus & Associates Inc. officially merged with Circle K Japan Co., Ltd. as of the September 1, 2004 fiscal year and is now officially Circle K Sunkus Co., Ltd (株式会社サークルKサンクス). The two brands remain separate - convenience stores owned by the company either have a Sunkus sign or a Circle K sign.

Name

The word "Sunkus" is a combination of the words "Sun" and "Thanks," http://www.circleksunkus.jp/company/outline/logo.html meant to be pronounced as the Japanese interpret the word "Thanks," and its logo is a combination of the words "Sun", "Kids", and "Us".

External links

• Circle K Sunkus Co., Ltd. Official website.