Retail at the Landmark

continued

tanked a few years ago. "I looked over all the franchises, and, in terms of how the business is structured, I liked 7-Eleven best."

Originally 7-Eleven was named for its long hours. In the nine-to-five 1940s, 7 a.m. until 11 p.m. was a madly daring experiment that succeeded (as did its next invention, the Slurpee). Now most 7-Eleven stores, including this one, are open twenty-four/seven.

No Thai! will eventually vacate its current South U spot to open next door to 7-Eleven. A sign in the window says "Jan. 2013--Okay, maybe not that soon."

Around the corner on the building's South U side, another Tim Hortons was preparing to open in early December. Sam Harris said he couldn't give much except the franchise owner's version of name, rank, and serial number. In fact, not even rank: he was unwilling to confirm he was the franchise owner. "Just say I'm the manager. I'm not trying to put you off. I just can't talk about it. I'll have corporate get back to you."