Gaga over Wawa: Brevard fans await opening

The occasional drive to Sanford for work means Brian Samosky can pop in at one of his favorite convenience stores — Wawa.

"The store is super crowded and super popular," said the 34-year-old Samosky, who lives in Port St. John and once worked at a Wawa as a teenager while living in New Jersey.

"If they're getting Wawa here in Brevard, it will be good," Samosky said.

Samosky has plenty of company in his excitement over Wawa preparing to open stores on the Space Coast.

The oh-so-popular Pennsylvania-based convenience store chain has been migrating south across Florida for a few years now. Soon, possibly later this year, it will be Brevard County's turn to have Wawas of its own, allowing residents to indulge in the chain's gourmet coffee and signature hoagies.

West Melbourne officials recently received plans for a Wawa at Minton Road and U.S. 192 while crews last Tuesday broke ground on a Wawa in Palm Shores off the Pineda Causeway.

Those are just the ones that have been announced. Wawa executives say Brevard County can expect as many as six in the next three years.

Wawa is a familiar name for many Floridians, who move here or are snowbirds from eastern seaboard states such as Delaware, Maryland and Virginia.

Each averages 5,600 to 6,000 square feet, quite a bit larger than a typical convenience store. Cheaper gas at Wawas is one draw but it has earned a fan base with its friendly staff, cleanliness and its made-to-order sandwiches, breakfast bowls, salads and other grab-and-go meals.

Stores carry more than 6,000 items, from candy to chips to cigarettes.

Think of Wawa as the Publix Super Markets of convenience stores and you get an idea of why the chain is so popular.

Competition grows sharper

Wawa competes with such convenience stores as BP, Circle K, Cumberland Farms and 7-Eleven. But, because of its deli offerings and coffees, places such as Panera Bread, Starbucks and Subway also feel Wawa's presence.

"You love to have people who are disciples of your brand, whether it's their coffee or their subs," said Steven Montgomery, president of b2b Solutions, a Chicago-based convenience store consultancy. "If you go to Wawa today they are large facilities with a great street presence. Think of 'curb appeal' when you're buying a house. They have curb appeal for convenience stores."

Wawa was among the first convenience stores to implement self-serve computer touch-screen menus for food orders, in an attempt to improve order accuracy. It also provides surcharge-free ATM transactions at its stores, the result of a partnership with PNC Bank that began in 1985. Wawa implemented the program in stores in 1996. In 2010, Wawa surpassed 1 billion transactions under the PNC brand

Over the next decade, Wawa expects to spend more than $1 billion on store construction and hiring thousands of people.

Each store employs about 35 people — the majority of them full-time. The chain has 19,000 employees nationwide, many of whom are enrolled in the company's employee stock ownership plan. Employees own 37 percent of the company; the founding Wood family holds the majority interest.

Rich history

Grahame Wood, opened the first Wawa Food Market in 1964 to sell dairy products. But really its history goes back to to 1803 when George Wood started an iron foundry in Pennsylvania.

The Wood family added a dairy operation to the company holdings in 1904 and called it "Wawa" — the name of the rural area of Pennsylvania where it was located.

(Most stores, but not those in Florida, still sell Wawa milk. Wawa's milk distribution centers are too far of a haul to Florida to allow for transportation of a fresh commodity like milk.)

Related to its fresh milk, Samosky, who relocated to Brevard from New Jersey last August, said Wawa-brand ice cream also has been a favorite.

"It's cheaper than some of the brand name ice creams," Samosky said, "but it's better."

Bragging rights

For a while it looked like Titusville would be in line for the first Wawa as the company began its Florida expansion. For whatever reason, that didn't occur and then last year the store announced plans for a West Melbourne site in front of the Lowe's home improvement store along U.S. 192. Wawa just recently submitted site plans for that store.

Now it's almost certain the Palm Shores Wawa — on the northeast corner of the heavily traveled Pineda Causeway Extension — will be built first. Construction crews began clearing land for the property last week but it's been in the planning stages for about a year, said Mike Renfro, a principal with Viera-based Matthew Development LLC.

Renfro and his partner, Ernie Euler, have been involved in developing numerous commercial and retail properties in Brevard — including The Avenue Viera — and the Palm Shores Wawa certainly had its challenges. Among them were zoning, traffic and property annexation issues.

"It was quite a complicated property to put together so we could actually put a Wawa there," Renfro said. "This one pretty much one the gamut of needing every regulatory, administrative and other changes to bring it across the finish line."

For more information contact Price at 321-242-3658 or wprice@floridatoday.com. You can also follow him on Twitter @Fla2dayBiz.

What's the hype?

Local takes on Wawa

"I couldn't be happier. I'm thrilled. I just like the Wawa stores because you can find things in there that you can't find in other stores. They've got fresh food, and I think their prices are in line with what they offer. Plus, it's clean, and they have so many different flavors of chips and ice cream." - Mary Ann Moren of West Melbourne

"It's just another nice convenience store. It's not like it's a Bass Pro coming to town. I don't understand why people are so excited... I'm curious to see how it compares to Cumberland Farms when it opens." - Ryan Seeloff of Palm Bay

"I grew up in Philly, which is a huge Wawa area, and I have fond memories. Wawa is a nice big convenience store with a better selection than most. I hear their jingle every time I drive by one of their stores. It's stuck with me. I introduced my daughter to Wawa in Orlando, and she's a convert. They have a fabulous deli with better bread than Subway, they also have soup and sometimes salads. It's the one place in Florida where you can get a good Philly soft pretzel. I don't know how the logistics of that works, but it's a great deal. If you walk into a 7/11 and then a Wawa, there's a huge difference in terms of selection and quality. Going to a Wawa is like going to Disney World - the Disney World of food. The Northern transplants like me are very, very excited, and I think the natives are very confused, but it'll have a huge impact on us Yankees." - Chuck Graudins of Viera

"You've got to go in and try it. I didn't understand what the fuss was over when my friend got upset about us not having a Wawa here, but then I went to one. It's like Trader Joe's, in that if people haven't been there, they don't know why it's special, but once they walk in, they're hooked." - Leah Guljord of West Melbourne