DALEVILLE — Wawa, the Pennsylvania-based gas station and restaurant with an enthusiastic fan following, is ready to serve its signature hoagies in Indiana. The first location opens Thursday, and many more are coming soon to the Hoosier State.
Wawa's first Indiana location is in Daleville next to Interstate 69 between Anderson and Muncie, just west of State Road 67. Like its other locations nationwide, it will serve freshly-made food and drinks to customers 24 hours a day.
"I drive for work, and I get off the highway here," said Myrisha Smith, who lives in Anderson. "I started to see the white parts and said, 'This looks familiar.' I saw the Wawa sign and said, 'Are you kidding?'"
The company invited special customers to a Wawa sneak preview on Wednesday. Smith was in the crowd because Wawa has become a family tradition with her sister and daughter.
"Every year since 2019, we've traveled to South Philly to have Wawa for the weekend," Smith said. "It's a 9-hour drive and it's worth it."
Wawa's Indiana expansion will arrive this year after at least three years of planning. Its location next to State Road 32 near Hazel Dell Elementary School in Noblesville will open May 22, and its location next to Interstate 65 in Clarskville will open on May 30.
"Expect us to open 8 to 12 stores every year per year for the next five years," said Wawa chief real estate officer John Poplawski. "That's 60 stores in Indiana over the next five years."
Wawa also expects to open stores in Indianapolis, Westfield, Plainfield and Cumberland by the end of 2025.
It will also open a store in Brownsburg this year, despite the construction site catching fire last month.
"It set us back about 30 days," Poplawski said. "We still plan to fully open the store a little later than we first hoped, but we're on our way."
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