Wawa has debuted its expansion in the Buckeye State with its first Ohio store. The store opened in Liberty Township on April 16, 2025. It was also Wawa Day, the 61st anniversary of Wawa in the retail chain. The store had a grand opening with free coffee and grants for the community. Wawa has planned to open in total of nine locations in Ohio this year.
Highlights
- Wawa opened its first store in Ohio at 7198 Cincinnati Dayton Road on April 16.
- This large retail brand is planning to open 8 more stores in Ohio in 2025.
- The store celebrated the grand opening and engaged the community through a hoagie-building competition.
Wawa Has Stepped into Ohio With Its First Store
On April 16, Wawa made its way to the Buckeye State with the first store opening in Ohio. The store opened in Liberty Township, is located at 7198 Cincinnati Dayton Road. 61 years ago, on the same day, Wawa opened its first ever store in Folsom, Pennsylvania.
President of Wawa, employees, and customers, everyone is elated with the addition of this one more feather to the cap. The president, Brian Schaller, expressed his excitement to bring food, beverages, and convenience to new customers. He stated that “this marks the beginning of the growth of Wawa in the Midwest, and the brand is proud to count more communities as part of the Wawa flock.”
Engaging Opening Celebrations at the Wawa Store
The opening celebration of the Wawa store was a grand one. Hundreds of loyal customers, first responders, local officials, and other community members gathered at the store location for the ribbon-cutting ceremony. Doors opened at 8 AM, and the first 250 customers got limited edition t-shirts. Then, the opening celebration started with “Parade of the Ages” to show Wawa’s history.
Then the hoagie-building competition, Hoagies for Heroes, took place. Members of Butler County Sheriff’s Office and the Liberty Township Fire Department competed against each other, making the event more exciting.
As it was also Wawa Day and the 61st anniversary of the brand, any-size free hot coffee was being offered at all stores across the country, including the new Ohio store. This offer will continue at this new location till April 27.
What Did Wawa Do For the Community on Opening Day
Wawa, being a big retail, not only hosted a grand opening, but just like every other time, also gave back to the community. On this optimistic occasion of the brand anniversary and expansion, Wawa offered generous grants to support local initiatives.
Wawa gave a $5,000 grant to a disaster relief organization named the American Red Cross Central and Southern Ohio Region. Another grant of the same amount was made for Cincinnati Children’s Hospital to contribute to the child life services. A campaign was also launched by the Wawa Foundation, Lending a Helping Hoagie. Freestore Foodbank will get the sales portion of up to $5,000 under this campaign, from the sales of hoagies in the first week.
With a kickstart opening of the first Ohio store, Wawa has its plans sorted for future expansion. With eight more Ohio store openings planned for this year, they are aiming at four to ten store openings per year to reach 45-55 stores in Ohio in the period of next ten years.
This expansion plan will offer work opportunities to local people. Each store needs an investment of over $7.5 million, 140 contractors and local partners, and 35 associates. The overall expansion plan might create around 2,000 long-term jobs.
