A Christmas request to Wawa on behalf of its non-smoking customers
It was a busy morning and I stopped at a Wawa for coffee, which is when a smoker screwed things up.
He led the line, asking the clerk for cigarettes. A complicated request, something like, “Patriotic American Menthol Light 100s in the box.”
The clerk hunted among the stacks of packs, then set one down.
“Lights,” said the smoker.
She hunted and set down another.
“Box,” he said, not soft pack.
Unable to find the precise smokes, she left the register to ask a co-worker. I was third in line when this started, and by the time the clerk and her co-worker returned to retrieve the correct cigarettes, there were four people behind me. All of us endured the smoker, some sighing.
The smoker paid no attention to us. He was about 50, average height, with a pinkish face and carrying maybe 30 pounds too much. No doubt this was due to his poor diet, which he displayed for all to see. On the counter he had set a sugary fountain beverage in a cup the size of a small trash can, a pastry, and a Sizzli, which is a carb-loaded, sodium-rich breakfast sandwich. They’re delicious with coffee, even if they do send your blood pressure as high as your grocery bill.
It’s not the first time I’ve experienced a smoker holding up a line at Wawa. I’m not even the first to write about it, so it happens enough to tick off Wawa’s (mostly) non-smoking customers. And for those of you who hold up Wawa lines seeking cheaper cigarettes, look, it’s why they’re called convenience stores. We all pay a little extra to get in and out fast. We have things to do, and none involve lighting up an off-brand smoke to calm our nerves. That’s why there’s Happy Hour.
I sent Wawa’s media flak a note about all of this, but haven’t heard back. Figures. Maybe it was those two columns I wrote sympathizing with neighbors in Bucks County and Vineland, New Jersey who didn’t want a Wawa next to them. Too much traffic.
Since it’s Christmas, I’d like to request something from the suits who run our beloved locally headquartered convenience chain: Quit selling tobacco products. No more blunts, chew or smokes.
It’s not that I want to tell people how to run their business or how to live. But is there anyone who doesn’t understand the dangers of smoking? When U.S. Surgeon General Luther Terry released his report on the health consequences of cigarettes in 1964, half of American adults smoked. Today it’s 12 percent, about one in five, which is still a lot.
Sure, ceasing the sale of smokes would mean a drop in Wawa revenues. And the state won’t be happy, since it collects an outrageous $2.60 in tax per pack. (New Jersey collects $2.70). But CVS, the pharmacy giant, stopped selling tobacco products in 2014. In 1996, Target, the retail behemoth, stopped cigarette sales. Both companies took a hit in their bottom lines, but are still around and appear prosperous. Their customers didn’t freak over it, even the smokers.
If appealing to convenience doesn’t move the suits in Wawa’s front office, then I appeal to their humanity. Haven’t any of you experienced the suffering and death of a loved one, friend or colleague who was a heavy smoker? Emphysema and lung cancer are brutal, and are brought about by stoking a habit of smoking Patriotic American Menthol Light 100s in a box. It’s why I quit years ago.
And if that doesn’t make you consider getting out of the tobacco-selling business, then I appeal to your business acumen, among the best in the country. Does it make sense to sell a product that sickens and kills your customers?
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With the advent of beer sales at a Wawa in Levittown, my guess is the company isn’t all that keen about promoting healthier living. And, sure, there are people who’d say, well, if they quit selling cigarettes, they should quit selling unhealthy Sizzlis, pastries and sugary fountain sodas. But that doesn’t hold up. Wawa offers a variety of healthy alternative eats, like fresh fruits, salads and wraps, even a veggie sandwich. It’s your choice between good and bad. But Wawa doesn’t sell a healthy cigarette, since none exists.
Here’s another reason to quit selling smokes, Wawa, and it’s something a lot of ex- and non-smokers have experienced, too.
After I finally got out of the store, I stepped outside. It was a lovely day of unusually warm weather with blue skies and crisp autumn air. It was spoiled with the smell of cigarette smoke. It was the doughy guy who had held up the line. He was standing next to his giant, four-door pickup truck, talking on his phone, smoking. I guess he didn’t want to skunk up the inside of his shiny Dodge Ram, so instead he skunked up the fresh air the rest of us breathe.
Spare us, Wawa.
JD Mullane can be reached at 215-949-5745 or at jmullane@couriertimes.com.
This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: Why Wawa should stop selling cigarettes
