Dallas woman competes in 7-Eleven franchise contest

DALLAS - A Dallas woman with a passion for business is competing in a contest to win her own 7-Eleven store.

A few minutes with Alyson Rae Lawson and her passion shines through.

Growing up, she watched her dad, a former owner and operator of two Dallas McDonald's restaurants, has fueled her passion and career dreams.

"Every time I ride down the street I'm like, ‘Ah, a restaurant,’” she said. “I keep it in my mind, I jot it down and I look up the franchising rules to it."

In March, a company rep from 7-Eleven she had reached out to previously called her up.

"He said they were having a contest. Thousands of people apply to contests. There's no way in this world. But I'll go ahead and apply,” she said. “I'll play along and just see what happens."

Lawson’s video to compete for the top prize of owning her own 7-Eleven franchise has now been shared tens of thousands of times on social media.

"When they said you're in the top 25, I said this is becoming a little more real,” she recalled. “And then there was the top seven.”

Lawson’s focus is on the people who helped her along the way.

"Leonard Jones: if it were not for him I wouldn't have earned a golf scholarship,” she said. “You keep getting more and more excited and your friends keep getting more excited. And then it becomes a competition of not just you but all of America is fighting for you."

At 28, Lawson has three college degrees, including two master's degrees in business and finance. Come July, she may very well have a 7-Eleven store.

"In the beginning, it was a long shot,” she admitted. “But over time, you keep building up all these levels. I could do this! This could happen!"

Voting ends July 2. A link to vote in 7-Eleven's Franchise Giveaway contest can be found here.