FamilyMart (ファミリーマート FamirÄ«mÄto) is a Japanese convenience store franchise chain first opened in Japan on September 1, 1981. FamilyMart is Japan’s 2nd largest convenience store chain, behind 7-Eleven. All of the usual Japanese convenience store goods such as basic grocery items, magazines, manga, soft drinks, alcoholic drinks like sake, nikuman, fried chicken, onigiri, and bento are available.
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.
Circle K Sunkus (サークルKサンクス SÄkuru K Sankusu) is a chain of company-operated and franchised convenience stores in Japan. The company is a division of UNY Co., Ltd., which licensed the Circle K name from Alimentation Couche-Tard, a Canadian convenience store company that owns the Circle K brand. On September 1, 2016, all Circle K Sunkus stores have been renamed to FamilyMart as the result of the FamilyMart Co. and Uny Group Holdings Co. merge.
Countries such as Japan, where Christmas is popular despite there being only a small number of Christians, have adopted many of the secular aspects of Christmas, such as gift-giving, decorations, and Christmas trees.
A successful advertising campaign in the 1970s made eating at KFC around Christmas a national custom. Its chicken meals are so popular during the season that stores take reservations months in advance.