May 5—A new Sheetz, a major Mid-Atlantic restaurant and convenience chain, has opened up in Willoughby.

The new store is located at 4145 Route 306, and officially opened up to the public at 8 a.m. on May 5. Customers were offered free, self-serve coffee and soda for the entire grand-opening day.

"We had a great turnout today at our grand opening," said Nick Ruffner, manager of public relations. "If that's any indication, I think the store is going to be really busy and people are going to appreciate having it here."

Named a Best Regional Fast Food Chain by USA Today's 10 Best Readers' Choice travel awards, Sheetz will be offering its award-winning Made-to-Order menu at the new Willoughby location. Customers will be able to order any of Sheetz's customized specialty drinks or food items around the clock.

"The Cleveland market has been great for us for so long, but we really haven't been too active with new stores coming into this market," said Ryan Sheetz, vice president of brand and marketing. "It feels good to be growing here. We have a lot of tenure people established in the market now and we're excited to bring more people on, and be a part of a growing community."

When a new Sheetz store opens up, it can create 35 new jobs on average for people, Sheetz said.

"I met a bunch of people who just joined us, but we have some veterans here as well," he said. "Our store manager — she's been with us for over a decade — so that really helps us have a solid culture."

When it comes to finding new locations to open a new store, major travel ways and interstates are looked at, as well as the traffic count, Sheetz said.

"We're also finding out where the energy is and what markets are growing," he said. "We want to be where our customers are."

In honor of the grand opening, Sheetz donated $2,500 to the Greater Cleveland Food Bank, and customers were encouraged to donate a non-perishable food item to the nonprofit.

A second donation of $2,500 was presented to the Special Olympics of Ohio. Sheetz has been a supporter of Special Olympics for more than 30 years and extends its support to the organization through product donations, and event volunteers.

Established in 1952, Sheetz is one of American's fastest-growing, family-owned and operated convenience store chains with more than 23,000 employees. It currently operates 648 locations across Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, Ohio and Maryland, with all locations open 24/7, 365 days a year.