Wawa has announced its latest Pennsylvania expansion — on Sept. 19, the retailer will officially unveil its first central Pennsylvania location.
The newest store will be located in Middeltown, right next to an existing Sheetz store — another Pennsylvania favorite which has more than 300 locations scattered throughout the state.
According to KDKA News, Wawa plans to open additional stores in York, Dover, Williamsport, Hanover and Enola by the end of the year, with the goal of launching 40 stores in the central Pennsylvania market over the next five years.
Along with the new site, Wawa will also announce new community partnerships at the grand opening ceremony, in addition to support through its “Hoagies for Heroes” initiative.
“We are excited to open our first store into Central PA, as well as celebrate others under construction,” said Katie Stevens, director of store operations, Wawa. “We look forward to continuing to bring our unique brand of fresh food, beverages and convenience to new areas and to further our commitment to providing the community with not only a new level of convenience but a strong, committed community partner.”
Each new store that Wawa builds costs about $7 million and employs an average of 140 contractors and local partners.
The retailer’s expansion into central Pennsylvania is expected to create 1,400 new long-term jobs, reported WGAL News.
Wawa’s ‘Aggressive Growth’
Earlier this year, Pennsylvania-based Wawa announced plans to grow its store count rapidly, with CEO Chris Gheysen noting that the chain was gearing up for “the most aggressive growth” in company history.
Then in February, Bloomberg reported that Wawa owners wanted to open as many as 280 new stores over the next decade, mainly located throughout Florida, Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia, North Carolina, Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky.
Since then, the retailer has been busy building up its existing footprint, in addition to expanding to new markets like West Virginia and Michigan.
Wawa has also already made known its plans to add 40 new stores in Kentucky, 60 in Ohio and 80 in North Carolina.
As a privately held company, Wawa currently operates 1,060 stores throughout Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, Florida, North Carolina, Alabama and Washington, D.C.
Each store offers a large fresh foodservice selection, including Wawa brands such as custom prepared hoagies, freshly-brewed coffee, hot breakfast sandwiches, handcrafted specialty beverages, a dinner menu including burgers and an assortment of soups, sides and snacks.
