Folks sure seem to feel strongly about the 7-Eleven bound for Avenue A. (Photo: Phillip Pantuso)
7-Eleven, ruthless corporate hegemon and tyrannical purveyor of Slurpees, has become something of a pariah in the East Village as of late. But with the advent of a new 7-Eleven-based startup, which promises to combat “an insanely annoying problem that every single person in this city faces,” might the Big Gulp goliath finally succeed in getting into the good books of East Villagers (and not just Jimmy McMillan)?
Long Island startup KeyMe launches this week in five 7-Elevens across Manhattan, with a kiosk coming Friday to 351 Bowery (or “Bowery St.,” as the press release puts it).
So much friendlier than the dude at the bodega. (Courtesy of KeyMe)
The self-service KeyMe kiosks promise to give you 24-hour access to your home or office keys, and you don’t even have to ask the guy at the bodega to hold onto them. For $19.99, digital copies of the keys can be cut into physical specimens in the event of a lockout. There’s also the option of printing a special bottle-opening key, which is like a key with a bottle-opener on the end. (On the downside, if you lose your keys again, you also lose your bottle opener.)
No 7-Eleven, the grassroots campaign against chain stores and corporate franchises, has been active in protesting against the evils of the Go-Go Taquito (and yes, the occasional evidence of a “modern-day plantation system”). This past weekend the group hosted a “joyful-artistic-poetic-musical protest” against the expected opening of a 7-Eleven on Avenue A.
But when the Slurpee-hating masses find themselves locked out of their beloved small businesses after a too-late night of slam poetry, with nowhere to turn, and not even a bottle-opener on hand to aid their woes – well, perhaps 7-Eleven won’t look like such a menace after all?