Wawa Opens Today; Free Coffee, Military Salute, Hoagie Competition

Curious about Wawa? A long-time fan? The wait is over today in Riverview, with the opening of the area's first Wawa, the company's 26th Florida location.

Special activities and deals are planned, according to a company news release. At 10 a.m. today, Sept. 5, the official grand-opening kickoff is set to feature a ribbon-cutting attended by state and local officials, members of USO Tampa Bay, the 332 Transportation Battalion, Wawa store associates and Wawa's mascot, Wally Goose. The singer and colorguard are to be provided by USO Tampa Bay.

“We are thrilled to expand our presence in Florida with the opening of our 26th Florida location and cannot think of a better way to celebrate than by recognizing the USO and showing our appreciation for the men and women who serve in the armed forces and their families,” said Todd Souders, director of store operations. “Our grand opening festivities are a wonderful way to bring the community and our local heroes together to celebrate our commitment to the greater Tampa Bay area.”

As noted in the event report:

• To celebrate the grand opening of this store, Wawa coffee will be free for ten days. In addition, Wawa will offer pricing for fuel below regular-market pricing in conjunction with the grand opening; as well as remain value-priced on an ongoing basis. 

• The grand opening event will conclude with a Hoagies for Heroes hoagie building competition, as the USO Tampa Bay Team and members from the Army’s 322 Transportation Battalion face off in a battle of bravery, skill and sandwich-making expertise.  Each team will be challenged to see who can build the most hoagies in three minutes in the traditional Wawa way. Wawa will conclude the Hoagies for Heroes competitions by presenting checks to the USO to help fund Military Appreciation Day events for members of the armed forces and their families.

• The new store will employ more than 50 associates, all of which are new positions brought to the area through the development of the store. Associates in these full and part-time positions will not only receive competitive salaries and health benefits, but will have the opportunity to be enrolled in Wawa’s employee stock ownership plan.

• The new Wawa store offers customers numerous Wawa brands, such as the award-winning Wawa coffee (195 million cups sold annually); the Sizzliä, Wawa’s new line of specialty beverages (hot, cold, iced and frozen)Wawa’s hot breakfast sandwich; Wawa Bakery; Wawa’s built-to-order hoagies (80 million sold annually); and Wawa’s beverage line of dairy products, juices and teas.

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