Wawa Adds Georgia to Its Expansion Plans
WAWA, Pa. — Wawa Inc. is looking to spread its wings into southern and coastal Georgia.
The Pennsylvania-based convenience retailer's current plans include opening its first Georgia store in 2024, with the potential for up to 20 stores in the market in the future, reported WSAV.
"While we can't confirm specific locations or timelines for construction at this stage in the process, we can say that we are actively looking into potential sites for new Wawa stores in Georgia and that we hope to open our first stores in the state by 2024," said Jennifer Wolf, external public relations supervisor of Wawa told WSAV.
"In the meantime, we couldn't be more excited to bring Wawa's one-of-a-kind brand and offering to this market in the near future. We look forward to serving the community with our quality fresh food and beverages and, as always, our deep commitment to the communities in which we operate," she added.
Wawa has plans to double its footprint within the next decade, zeroing in on the Florida Panhandle region, along with adjacent markets in South Alabama. As Convenience Store News previously reported, the convenience retailer is "actively looking" into sites for new stores in the Florida markets of Pensacola, Panama City and Tallahassee, along with Mobile, Ala.
"Expanding to Georgia is a natural extension from the Florida Panhandle and we look forward to serving more communities along the East Coast," said Wawa Vice President of Real Estate John Poplawski.
Wawa currently plans to open up to 40 convenience stores in these markets. The first stores are expected to welcome customers in 2024.
Staying true to its roots, Wawa is additionally looking to grow its footprint closer to home. The company plans to expand the number of locations it operates in central Pennsylvania by adding more locations along the Susquehanna River.
It is likely in the next two years Wawa will open the first of 40 new stores in the area.
Wawa operates roughly 965 c-stores throughout Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, Florida and Washington, D.C. It wants to operate approximately 1,800 locations by 2030, eventually cutting the ribbon on up to 100 c-stores a year.