PHILADELPHIA -- Many consumers treat a pilgrimage to the Wawa convenience store like a religious experience. Now Wawa Inc. hopes to heighten that holy fervor. The chain said it plans on opening its Center City flagship location in Philadelphia later this year, and the retail brokerage firm representing Wawa said it wants to open in time for the World Meeting of Families, which will include a visit by Pope Francis.
“They’ve targeted an opening date and are rushing to open prior to the pope’s visit,” Larry Steinberg, senior vice president of CBRE, the retail brokerage firm representing Wawa in its Philadelphia expansion program, told The Philadelphia Business Journal.
Wawa, Pa.-based Wawa is set to open a more than 5,000-square-foot convenience store--it's first with indoor searing--at the former Robinson’s luggage store in the Center City district.
The projected opening date is “early November,” Wawa spokesperson Lori Bruce told the newspaper. It will release an actual date once construction begins this summer.
Pope Francis will be visiting the United States for the first time in September, stopping in Philadelphia from September 22 to 27. He will participate on September 26 and 27 for the Festival of Families celebration and a Papal Mass on the Ben Franklin Parkway.
The city expects about two million people to come to Philadelphia during the event, estimated to have an economic impact of $417.8 million. About $390 million of that will come from Pope Francis’ visit alone, said the report.
“Wawa would be ecstatic if they could open for the pope’s visit,” Steinberg said, “but reality is that getting it open by then is very difficult."
Wawa enthusiasts are praying for a miracle.
Wawa has more than 680 convenience stores, approximately 420 offering gasoline, in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia and Florida. The stores offer a large fresh food service selection, including Wawa brands such as built-to-order hoagies, freshly brewed coffee, hot breakfast sandwiches, built-to-order specialty beverages and an assortment of soups, sides and snacks.
Click here to view the full Philadelphia Business Journal report.