Dive Brief:
- Wawa has added two more cities to its Tennessee expansion plans, according to a report from WKRN in Nashville.
- The popular convenience retailer filed permits with the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation to build stores in Lebanon and Manchester, Tennessee, the publication noted. Wawa had already submitted permits for stores in Dickson, Bellevue, Clarksville and Springfield.
- Wawa’s growing number of applications in Tennessee underscore its nationwide expansion plans, which include reaching 1,800 stores over the next few years across several new markets.
Dive Insight:
Wawa first announced its expansion into Tennessee in June 2022, sharing plans at the time to eventually build up to 40 stores in the state.
In April, Wawa applied to build its stores in Dickson and Bellevue. Two months later, the retailer received approval for a location in Clarksville, and in July it submitted a permit application for its location in Springfield.
Each of these six cities is located within 65 miles of downtown Nashville. The Dickson, Lebanon and Manchester sites are all located off interstate exits, according to WKRN.
At the start of 2022, Wawa operated about 956 stores in seven states — Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, Florida and Washington D.C. Since then, the company has announced a flurry of expansion plans that would bring it to seven new states and build on its existing territories within the coming years.
Besides Tennessee, those markets include North Carolina, Georgia, Ohio, Indiana, Alabama and Kentucky. Just last month, Wawa outlined plans to open 60 stores in Ohio, 40 stores in Kentucky and 60 stores in Indiana over the next eight to 10 years. The company has already gotten approval for its first location in Kentucky.
Wawa currently operates over 1,000 stores.
