If you're not familiar with Wawa, it's a gas station/convenience store chain that originated in Pennsylvania, but now exists in New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and Florida as well. I first discovered Wawa while visiting my sister in college at William & Mary in the early 2000's. At the time I was blown away by how much better it was than everything else of it's kind; particularly the fresh sandwiches they made to order. I don't think I'd been back inside a Wawa in the decade since, until this past weekend. While at a family reunion in the Poconos I spotted one near the hotel, and knew I had to give it a try. True to my memory, Wawa is still far and away the gold standard of the convenience store industry. From the incredible coffee selection, to the enormous array of appealing looking pre-made snacks, to the amazing deli/sandwich counter that operates with a computer ordering system (like Boloco, but better) featuring a ridiculous number of choices; Wawa is head and shoulders above the rest.
Which brings to mind two questions: One, why doesn't every competitor start modelling themselves after Wawa? And two, why do I have to travel through 3 states just to find one? We need Wawa in New England, stat!
Note: I searched through pages of google images for a Wawa photo, and this was my favorite. After clicking on the link I discovered that it is in fact the very first one I ever went to, in Williamsburg, VA. Weird.
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