Wawa finally comes to Louisville. Here's when and where to find it
Beloved convenience store chain Wawa is coming to Kentucky a bit sooner than expected, with plans for rapid expansion.
“We want people to, going from point A to point B, to have a Wawa intercept them and be an easy stop for whatever they need, whether it's services, food, fuel, something quick, dinner to take home," Wawa CEO Chris Gheysens told the Courier Journal. "It means we’re going to be here for the long term.”
Gheysens and other Wawa leaders were in Louisville on Tuesday to unveil additional details on their company's expansion into Kentucky.
Here's what we know.
What is Wawa?
Part traditional convenience store, part gas station, part fresh-food source, Pennsylvania-based Wawa operates more than 1,000 locations across Delaware, Florida, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Washington, D.C.
Fans of the chain will be familiar with not only the stores' fuel stations and convenience store staples but also the custom-made hoagies, hot breakfast sandwiches and dinner menu.
Where is Wawa planning on opening in Kentucky?
Wawa has about 15 sites under contract in Boone, Bullitt, Fayette, Hardin, Jefferson, Jessamine, Oldham, Scott, Shelby and Warren counties. A handful of locations are in the Louisville area. They are:
9650 Preston Crossing Blvd
4314 Bardstown Road
Highway 393 & Commerce Parkway (Buckner, KY)
1354 Veterans Parkway (Clarksville, IN)
415 Oakbrooke Drive (Mt. Washington, KY)
How many stores will Wawa open in Kentucky?
The company plans to open some 40 stores across Kentucky over the next eight to 10 years.
“It’ll be much more than that over the longer term," Gheysens said. "We’re not about coming in and opening up just a few stores. Our model is really predicated on, in a lot of ways, critical mass of stores.”
The company invests about $7 million on each store opening, officials said.
When will Wawa open?
When Wawa announced in late 2022 that it would enter the Louisville market, the company said it was targeting store launches after 2025.
Now, the company is planning to open its first stores by mid-2025. Ten stores are set to open that year, with five to follow in subsequent years. Wawa officials said they're actively looking into new sites in Kentucky.
Groundbreaking on the company's first Kentucky locations is set for mid-2024.
Gheysens said Wawa tends to look for 1.5- to 2-acre sites for its approximately 6,000-square-foot store, gas pumps and parking spaces.
"We’ll really look for traffic, high traffic corridors with good access on side main streets, good access and flow," he said.
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Why is Wawa coming to Kentucky?
The growth into Kentucky is part of a wider Midwest expansion that also includes Ohio and Indiana. The privately owned company is also expanding to North Carolina, Alabama, Georgia, and Tennessee.
"We’re compelled to continue to grow even as a private company," Gheysens said.
Wawa began as a New Jersey iron foundry company in the early 1800s, later transforming into a dairy farming and milk delivery business by the 20th century before opening its first food-focused store in 1964.
Having expanded to Florida 11 years ago from its base in the Mid-Atlantic region, Gheysens said the company is now looking to expand westward as part of a larger plan to grow in the southeast.
“Making a leap this way allows us to build out a strategy and network in the Midwest that eventually will go south and sort of connect, almost in a 'U' pattern, continuing through Tennessee, Alabama, down to the coast," he said.
Growth & development reporter Matthew Glowicki can be reached at mglowicki@courier-journal.com, 502-582-4000 or on Twitter @mattglo.
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Wawa in Louisville, Kentucky: Store locations and opening timeline
