Wawa (company)

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This article is about the company in Pennsylvania. For the radio station company in Wisconsin, see WAWA (AM).

Wawa, Inc.
Company typePrivate
Industry
FoundedApril 16, 1964; 60 years ago (1964-04-16)
FounderGrahame Wood
Headquarters
Wawa, Pennsylvania
,
United States[1]
Number of locations
900 (2020)[2]
Area served
Mid-Atlantic states, Florida
Key people
Chris Gheysens (CEO)[3]
Products
  • Coffee
  • Hoagies
  • Prepared foods
  • Gasoline
  • Beverages
  • Snacks
  • Dairy products
  • Salads
RevenueIncrease US$13 billion (2019)[4]
Increase US$118 million (2011)[5]
Total assetsIncrease US$1.57 billion (2011)[5]
Number of employees
31,000 (2017)[1]
ParentWild Goose Holding Co.
Websitewww.wawa.com

Wawa, Inc. (/wɑːwɑː/ WAH-WAH) is an American chain of convenience stores and gas stations located along the East Coast of the United States, operating in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, Washington, D.C., and Florida.[6] The company's corporate headquarters is located in the Wawa area of Chester Heights, Pennsylvania in Greater Philadelphia. As of 2008, Wawa was the largest convenience store chain in Greater Philadelphia, and it is also the third-largest retailer of food in Greater Philadelphia, after Acme Markets and ShopRite.[7][8]

History

Old Wawa logo used from 1990 to 2004

The Wawa business began in 1803 as an iron foundry.[6] In 1890, George Wood, an entrepreneur from New Jersey,[9] moved to Delaware County, Pennsylvania; it was here that he began the Wawa Dairy Farm.[9] Wood imported cows from the British Crown dependency island of Guernsey, and bought 1,000 acres (400 ha) of land in the Chester Heights area;[9] the corporate headquarters would later be renamed Wawa. Since pasteurization was not yet available, many children faced sickness from consuming raw milk. Wood arranged for doctors to certify his milk was sanitary and safe for consumption, which convinced many consumers to buy the product.[9] The strategy worked, and allowed the Wawa dairy to grow. Demand for dairy products grew rapidly during the 1920s, and so did the company. Wawa began using the slogan "Buy Health by the Bottle"; they served customers in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, delivering milk to customers' homes.

In the 1960s, however, many consumers began buying milk in stores instead of using home delivery. Wawa started to open its own stores to adjust to these market changes.[6][9] On April 16, 1964, Grahame Wood, George Wood's grandson, opened the first Wawa Food Market at 1212 MacDade Boulevard in Folsom, Pennsylvania,[10] which remained in operation until June 17, 2016, when it closed in favor of a new "Super Wawa" down the street. A parade was held from the original location to the new store on opening day.[8][11][12]

The Wawa Food Market stores were also part of a then-new trend in retailing, the convenience store. Open both earlier and later than traditional supermarkets, they carried other foods and beverages besides milk, as well as other items from the Wawa dairy.

The old Wawa Dairy Farms building in Wawa, Pennsylvania

In 1977, Wawa began sharing ownership of the company with its associates through profit-sharing plans. In 1992, Wawa formalized its associate ownership with its Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP), with stock being awarded to associates annually based on the prior year's service. Because the company is privately held, Wawa secures an independent assessment of its stock value at regular intervals to ensure that the ESOP is fairly maintained. Today, the ESOP accounts for more than 40% of Wawa stock.

Company

The chain's name comes from the site of the company's first milk plant and corporate headquarters in the Wawa, Pennsylvania area. The name of the town Wawa is in turn derived from the Ojibwe word for the Canada goose. (Longfellow uses the word in Book II ("The Four Winds") of The Song of Hiawatha, writing "He it was who [. . . ] sent the wild-goose, Wawa, northward") An image of a goose in flight serves as the Wawa corporate logo.

Leadership

The current CEO of Wawa is Chris Gheysens, who succeeded Howard Stoeckel in January 2013.[3][13] Eleuthère (Thère) du Pont has served as both the CFO and president, but is no longer associated with the company. Richard "Dick" Wood Jr. is chairman of the board of directors.[14] Many Wood family members are active in the company. Although Wawa is a family-run business, Wawa associates own roughly 50% of the company, more than 40% of which is owned through the company's employee stock-ownership program.[15]

Holdings and locations

A typical Wawa convenience store and gas station in Willow Grove, Pennsylvania

In 2015, Wawa ranked 34th on the Forbes magazine list of the largest private companies, with total revenues of $9.68 billion.[16] As of 2016, Wawa employs over 22,000 people[6][16] in 720+ stores (450+ offering gasoline).[17] As of 2008, Wawa's New Jersey stores were concentrated mostly in South Jersey.[18]

As of 1989 Wawa Inc. and the Wood family together control about 725 acres (293 ha) of land, containing the corporate headquarters, the Wawa dairy farm, and J.T. Farms, within two municipalities in Delaware County, Pennsylvania. The properties are located in Chester Heights and Middletown Township. Wawa Inc. owns 50 acres (20 ha) of land around "Red Roof," the corporate headquarters, 150 acres (61 ha) of land around the Wawa dairy, and the 225-acre (91 ha) J.T. Farms. The Wood family owns 300 acres (120 ha) of estate property. Cynthia Mayer of the Philadelphia Inquirer said that, as a result of the land holdings, the Wood family was "the closest thing to a feudal barony this side of du Pont."[9]

Beginning in the 1940s, the dairy facility began selling excess parcels of land. In 1964, it sold about 40 acres to the Franklin Mint. Several years prior to 1989, the dairy sold 25 acres of land to a retirement complex, Granite Farms Estates. The process of selling excess land continued sporadically.

Wawa Inc. owns the 225-acre J.T. Farms, a separate farm property. As of 1989 Wawa Inc. leases it to Bill Faul, who maintained a herd of 100 Holstein cattle and paid $1,500 (currently $2778.12) per month. Wawa continued to own the farm due to symbolic reasons. It also kept heifers along Route 1 in a strip of land adjacent to the plant which did not produce milk; Fritz Schroeder, then-vice president of Wawa Inc., said in 1989, "[w]e like them for the ambiance."[19]

Wawa, for the most part, covers parts of Pennsylvania not already served by rival stores such as Sheetz. Wawa is often compared to Sheetz due to their similar business models and Pennsylvania roots,[20] leading to a fierce "rivalry" between the two chains among Pennsylvanians, though the two companies themselves have a friendly relationship and aside from a few small overlapping areas in eastern Pennsylvania generally do not compete head-to-head.[21][22]

Corporate headquarters

"Red Roof" at Wawa headquarters in Chester Heights, Pennsylvania

The company's corporate headquarters is located in the Wawa area, along Baltimore Pike[23][24] in Chester Heights.[25][26] The headquarters is in proximity to Middletown Township.[27] As of 2011 about 300 employees work in the headquarters. The Borough of Chester Heights receives a majority of its local services tax from employees of Wawa.[25]

Programs and promotions

Wawa provides surcharge-free ATMs, the result of a partnership with PNC Bank that began in 1985. Wawa implemented the program in stores in 1996. In 2010, Wawa surpassed 1 billion transactions under the PNC brand.[28]

In the late 1980s and through the 1990s, Wawa engaged in a scholarship sponsorship program that involved Irish students (mainly from UCC in Cork, Ireland) running some stores on the Pennsylvania Main Line, allowing the students to study for their MBAs from Saint Joseph's University in Philadelphia.[29]

A Wawa coffee bar counter with different flavors. A staple of Wawa stores for years, the glass carafes were replaced with coffee dispensers around 2010.

In 1994, Wawa opened a store in Center City, Philadelphia, which sold food only.[30]

In 1994, Wawa debuted the "Super Wawa", larger stores with public restrooms and more parking. Gasoline pumps were added in 1996.[31][10] On October 21, 2010, Wawa began testing the sale of diesel fuel at 12 of its New Jersey locations due to an increasing number of cars using this fuel.[32]

In the 2000s, Wawa was among the first stores to implement self-serve computer touch-screen menus for food orders, in an attempt to improve order accuracy, speed and for upselling.[33]

In 2003, Wawa and McLane Co. reached a 30-year agreement to construct a distribution center in Carney's Point, New Jersey, to handle the majority of Wawa's distribution.[34][35] The center began operation in May 2004.[35]

In 2005, Wawa partnered with JPMorgan Chase to offer a Visa credit card branded with the Wawa name. It ceased issuing new cards in December 2007 and the program was canceled in November 2010.[36] Wawa would later partner with Citi to restart the Wawa credit card program.[37]

Wawa moved into social media to connect with its customers, and in 2006, its "I Love Wawa" MySpace page had over 5,000 members. By the middle of 2013, its Facebook page had reached nearly 1.1 million likes.[38]

On June 30, 2010, 20 Wawa locations in Pennsylvania started a trial of selling Pennsylvania Lottery tickets from automated kiosks. On December 6, 2010, it announced that all 210 Pennsylvania Wawa locations would sell lottery tickets from kiosks by spring 2011.[39][40]

On April 16, 2014, to celebrate its 50th anniversary, Wawa gave away free coffee and launched a nonprofit foundation to donate $50 million to health and hunger initiatives.[41]

Products

Chicken salad hoagie from Wawa

Wawa offers products found at most convenience chain marts such as chips, drinks, and soda. Wawa also sells its own branded iced tea, orange juice, and milk. Wawa used to sell its own branded soda but it has been discontinued. Wawa has Coca-Cola Freestyle soda fountains.

Key products include its variety of coffee, latte, and cappuccino flavors and sizes, and made-to-order hoagies. Wawa also offers a brand of hot breakfast products, most famous of which is the "Sizzli", and also a full deli with touch-screen ordering of sandwiches, hot sides, drinks, and deli meats. Wawa sells alcohol in Florida, Virginia, and at select locations in Pennsylvania.[42][43][44]

For a short time between 1994 and 1996, Wawa sold Pizza Hut personal pan pizzas and Taco Bell burritos.[30]

In 2018, Wawa introduced a secret menu to celebrate its 54th anniversary.

In 2020, Wawa tested burgers, waffle fries, and chicken sandwiches at six locations.[45] Later in the same year, Wawa begin testing a dinner menu at select locations. The dinner menu includes items such as burgers, fries, pasta, and rotisserie chicken.[46]

Store locations

Wawa footprint as of January 2021

Wawa operates stores in Delaware, Florida, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. Wawa's territory once stretched into Northern New Jersey, New York and Connecticut, but in the late 1990s, the decision was made to abandon the franchised stores in the New York metropolitan area and New England, as it was too competitive. The abandoned stores were re-branded when they were sold to Krauszer's (in Connecticut) and a variety of other convenience retailers, but most are still recognizable as they retain their distinctive "Wawa" design. The company continued to operate numerous stores in Central Jersey and South Jersey, and re-entered North Jersey in 2010, when Wawa opened a new store in Parsippany.[47] Wawa opened its 100th Super Wawa in New Jersey on October 12, 2012, in Woodbridge.[48] Wawa moved farther into North Jersey opening in Kearny on January 11, 2013, and Lodi on October 4, 2013. The company plans to open five Wawas a year in North Jersey for the next 10 to 12 years.[49]

On July 18, 2012, Wawa entered the Florida market when it opened its first location in Orlando.[50] It had expanded to more than 70 Florida locations by the end of 2015, with plans for 120 more by 2022.[51]

As of October 2020, Wawa has over 900 locations across Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Washington, D.C., and Florida.[2]

In some Jersey Shore towns, Wawa designs its stores to match the aesthetic, and changes operating procedures to adapt to shore culture. In Cape May, Wawa has a Victorian-themed store. In Wildwood, there is a 1950s-themed store.[52]

Wawa opened its largest location at the time in the Farragut Square area of Washington, D.C. on December 14, 2017.[53] On December 14, 2018, Wawa opened a flagship location at 6th Street and Chestnut Street in Center City, Philadelphia. The store, at 11,500 square feet (1,070 m2), is the largest Wawa location and features a living greenery wall, large digital screens, couches, café seating, and two "Philly Firsts" murals.[54]

On December 18, 2020, Wawa opened its first drive-thru at a convenience store/gas station location in Westampton, New Jersey.[55] In September 2020, Wawa began construction on its first drive-thru only location in Falls Township, Bucks County, Pennsylvania; this location opened on January 8, 2021.[55][56]

Data breach

On December 20, 2019, Wawa's CEO Chris Gheysens announced that the company had found malicious software on its payment processing servers that affected every location across the country, according to the statement.[58] The malware is believed to have been on the servers since as early as March 4, 2019, and contained on December 12, 2019.[59]

On December 27, 2019, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported that at least six lawsuits seeking class-action status have been filed against the company in federal court in Philadelphia.[60]

Controversies

Wawa's expansion efforts have sometimes met with controversy from local communities. In Coral Gables, Florida, land which was planned to be used for affordable housing was instead approved as a new site for a Wawa gas station. This land is near a school and historic properties.[61] The Mount Laurel, New Jersey zoning board granted numerous exceptions to Wawa despite opposition from neighbors and outvoted board members.[62]

References

  1. ^ a b "Wawa on the Forbes America's Best Employers 2019 List". Forbes. Retrieved May 18, 2019.
  2. ^ a b "Wawa Reaches 900th Store Milestone in Springfield, NJ". Springfield, NJ Patch.
  3. ^ a b "Wawa CEO Howard Stoeckel To Retire At The End Of 2012 | Food World | Food Trade News". Best-met.com. Retrieved February 9, 2018.
  4. ^ "Wawa on the Forbes America's Best Employers 2019 List". Forbes. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  5. ^ a b "#47 Wawa". Forbes. 2012.
  6. ^ a b c d "About Wawa". Wawa. 2016. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
  7. ^ "Wawa's wonders of retailing, The dairy and convenience-store chain is marking 100 years." Philadelphia Inquirer. August 5, 2002. D01. Retrieved on December 21, 2011. "Wawa not only dominates the convenience-store business in the Philadelphia region but is also the third-largest food retailer, trailing only Acme Markets and ShopRite." and "To boost sales, the company opened its first Wawa Food Market in 1964 in Folsom, Delaware County. Stores now spread from central Pennsylvania and central New Jersey to southern Virginia. In the 1970s, the company began selling more coffee by the cup,[...]"
  8. ^ a b Wood, Anthony R. (April 16, 2009). "A little dairy with a big idea How success came to Wawa". Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved December 21, 2011.
  9. ^ a b c d e f Mayer, Cynthia (June 15, 1989). "Pay A Visit To Wawa, The Place". Philadelphia Inquirer. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved December 9, 2018.
  10. ^ a b "Wawa Timeline". Wawa. 2014. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
  11. ^ Ormsby, Barbara (July 21, 2014). "Wawa closing its original store". Daily Local News. West Chester, PA. Retrieved July 21, 2014.
  12. ^ Babay, Emily (June 17, 2016). "Wawa's 1st store closes today". Philly.com. Philadelphia Media Network. Retrieved January 24, 2017.
  13. ^ "Howard B. Stoeckel Profile". Forbes. Retrieved October 16, 2008.
  14. ^ DiStefano, Joseph N. (January 30, 2020). "'Wawa is pretty much dead to me': Founding family accused of cheating former workers out of millions in company stock". The Morning Call. Tribune Publishing. Retrieved February 28, 2021.
  15. ^ "The Inside Story of Wawa, the Beloved $10 Billion Convenience Store Chain Taking Over the East Coast". Inc. Retrieved October 11, 2019.
  16. ^ a b "Wawa on the Forbes America's Largest Private Companies List". Forbes. Retrieved March 27, 2016.
  17. ^ "Wawa and Comcast team up to deliver free wi-fi at more than 700 East Coast locations" (PDF). Wawa. April 26, 2016. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
  18. ^ Strauss, Robert. "North Jersey or South? A Search for the Line." The New York Times. July 13, 2008. Retrieved on December 23, 2011. "There is the 'hoagie-sub' question: 'Hoagie' is a South Jersey term for a sandwich on a long roll, while a sub is the North Jersey version. No self-respecting North Jersey resident would know the Philadelphia Eagles fight song, and no South Jersey fan would wear a Giants T-shirt. Wawa stores dot the South, while North Jersey folks get their caffeine at a 7-11."
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  20. ^ "Archives - Philly.com". Articles.philly.com. Retrieved February 9, 2018.
  21. ^ O'Connell, Jon (August 17, 2019). "There's a heated Sheetz/Wawa rivalry everywhere but here". The Citizens' Voice. Retrieved July 12, 2020.
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  23. ^ Mayer, Cynthia. "Pay A Visit To Wawa, The Place." Philadelphia Inquirer. June 15, 1989. D4. p. 1. Retrieved on September 16, 2012.
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  26. ^ "Borough of Chester Heights Zoning Map." (Archive) Borough of Chester Heights. Retrieved on September 16, 2012.
  27. ^ "Stores Post Billboard Ads for Tobacco, Despite Ban." The New York Times. May 9, 1999. Retrieved on December 23, 2011.
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  42. ^ Logue, Tim (June 14, 2015). "Wawa hops into the beer-sales market". Delaware County Daily Times. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
  43. ^ Wilson, Shawnette (August 4, 2015). "Chadds Ford Wawa Soon To Sell Beer". Philadelphia, PA: WTXF-TV. Retrieved January 18, 2019.
  44. ^ "Wawa applies for Another Pa. Liquor License, Continues Push Into Alcohol Sales". Philadelphia, PA: WCAU-TV. June 22, 2020. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
  45. ^ Tanenbaum, Michael (February 12, 2020). "Wawa testing burgers, waffle fries and chicken sandwiches". PhillyVoice. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
  46. ^ Tanenbaum, Michael (August 24, 2020). "Wawa testing new dinner menu items including pasta, platters, burger and fries". PhillyVoice. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
  47. ^ Paik, Eugene (June 14, 2010). "Wawa's Parsippany store will be its northernmost location". The Star-Ledger. Retrieved December 16, 2010.
  48. ^ Bell, Deborah (October 9, 2012). "Wawa Set to Open New Fords Store This Friday". Woodbridge Patch. Retrieved December 21, 2012.
  49. ^ Genovese, Peter (January 11, 2013). "Wawa in Mahwah some day? Chain invades North Jersey". The Star-Ledger. Retrieved January 12, 2013.
  50. ^ "Florida's first Wawa opens today in Orlando, Orlando". Central Florida News 13. July 18, 2012.
  51. ^ Valverde, Miriam (November 9, 2015). "Wawa plans 120 stores in South Florida". Sun Sentinel. Retrieved July 1, 2016.
  52. ^ Warner, Susan (August 14, 2005). "Mom and Pop Hold Sway At the Shore". The New York Times. Retrieved December 24, 2011.
  53. ^ Aggarwal, Nehal (December 14, 2017). "DC's First Wawa Opens With Selfie-Screens and Nitro Coffee". Washingtonian. Retrieved December 15, 2017.
  54. ^ "Largest Wawa ever opens in Center City Philadelphia". Philadelphia, PA: WPVI-TV. December 14, 2018. Retrieved December 27, 2018.
  55. ^ a b Staff (December 18, 2020). "Wawa opens first drive-thru at Westampton, NJ store". Philadelphia, PA: WPVI-TV. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
  56. ^ Staff (January 5, 2021). "Grand opening of Wawa drive-thru in Falls Township set for Friday". Philadelphia, PA: WTXF-TV. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
  57. ^ Press, JODY SNIDER Daily. "WAWA BRINGS NEW COMPETITION TO AREA'S CONVENIENCE STORES". dailypress.com. Retrieved July 10, 2020.
  58. ^ Jr, Steve Roberts. "Wawa gas stations announce credit card data breach that could affect every location nationwide". dailypress.com/virginiagazette. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
  59. ^ "Wawa says data breach affected thousands over 10 months". New York Post. Associated Press. December 20, 2019. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
  60. ^ "Wawa data breach: Convenience chain facing lawsuits over security incident at all of its stores". USA TODAY. Retrieved December 29, 2019.
  61. ^ "How did a historic Gables property donated for affordable housing become a gas station?". Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  62. ^ "'Like it's the Taj Mahal on a postage stamp': Mount Laurel zoning board approves controversial Wawa". Retrieved February 2, 2021.

Further reading

External links

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