Wawa's New Format Caters to Food Customers on the Go
PHILADELPHIA — Wawa Inc. opened a one-of-a-kind new store designed to meet the needs of busy customers who want good food in a hurry.
Located at 33 S. 16th Street in Philadelphia, the 3,000-square-foot store is half the size of a standard Wawa convenience store and features a pick-up window for mobile orders and online ordering. According to Wawa, the format is a first for the City of Brotherly Love.
The c-store also introduces a new line of "Good to Go" expanded hot and cold express items, as well as the introduction of unique products such as a self-serve hot tea bar featuring Revolution Tea.
Wawa seeks to reduce its environmental footprint for the new location by introducing compostable straws, reusable bags, and the option to purchase a reusable mug for coffee or other hot beverages.
"At Wawa, we strive to accommodate our customers in multiple ways and this new store design is geared towards meeting the needs of our local community members who require quick food options without sacrificing fresh and quality ingredients to fuel their daily routine," said David Simonetti, senior director of store operations for Wawa.
A grand opening event was held at 8 a.m. on Jan. 10, with free t-shirts given to the first 100 people through the door. Free coffee will be available from opening day through Jan. 13.
An official ribbon-cutting ceremony took place at 10 a.m. and included General Manager Christopher Marvel; Wawa Area Manager Ron Christensen; Wawa Director of Store Operations Becky Altemus; Dave Simonetti; and Wawa's mascot, Wally Goose.
City officials and Welcome America leadership also joined in the festivities to celebrate Wawa's longstanding title sponsorship of the annual Wawa Welcome America Festival and publicly announce the retailer's commitment as title sponsor of the annual festival through 2024.
Wawa also joined forces with founding members from PA Convention Center, PREIT and others to announce its support of PHL Cares, an initiative aimed at providing permanent supportive housing units for 100 homeless people.
The grand opening concluded with a signature Hoagies for Heroes hoagie-building competition during which teams from the Philadelphia Police Department and Philadelphia Fire Department faced off to see who can build the most hoagies in the traditional Wawa way in just three minutes. Wawa presented checks on behalf of the winning and runner-up teams for $1,000 to the charities of their choice.
Pennsylvania-based Wawa operates more than more than 880 c-stores in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, Florida and Washington, D.C.