Wawa Submits Permits for Tennessee Expansion

WAWA, Pa. — Wawa Inc. has filed permits with the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation to expand its convenience store network into Dickson, Lebanon and Manchester.

The chain initially announced its plans for Tennessee in 2022, with an eye on targeting the Nashville area and opening up its first stores in 2025. The company stated part of its goal for the middle Tennessee expansion was to fill in the gaps between its primary service areas in the Northeast and Florida.

Wawa's preferred potential sites would all be located off of interstate exits and primarily service the middle Tennessee region, according to wkrn.com.

The forward momentum seen in Tennessee is a piece of Wawa's ambitious expansion plans over the last few years. The company has already broken ground on its first forays into North Carolina and Alabama with plans to open locations in both states by 2024. 

This fall, the company also went on a three-state tour to introduce itself to communities in Kentucky, Ohio and Indiana. Wawa intends to break ground in all three of these states by mid-2024, with stores slated to open contemporaneously with Tennessee sites in 2025. Additionally, Wawa plans to use variations of its newly revamped prototype store model in all three locations.

Though the company often prides itself on its methodical growth, the c-store operator's expansion has occasionally resulted in some good-natured competition, with its expansion westward running into the growth plans of fellow Pennsylvania-based c-store Sheetz Inc.

Pennsylvania-based Wawa operates 1,000 c-stores throughout the Northeast and Florida, with stores located in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, Florida and Washington, D.C. The retailer currently has plans to double its footprint within the next decade.

Wawa is No. 7 on the 2023 Convenience Store News Top 100 ranking.