Wawa has a lot of fans on the RetailWire BrainTrust. That explains the almost universally positive discussions that took place this year as members of the RW community offered opinions on the chain's commitment to its people, customers and other factors that make it a company worth watching, no matter which channel you do business in.
"Wawa has long been on my list of most admired firms. It's near legendary in its home markets of NJ and Eastern PA, where it excels at serving the morning coffee and lunch trade. Its use of kiosk and order queuing technology to speed the ordering process during the morning and midday peaks is a model for the C-store industry. I'm not sure it's quite valid to compare Wawa, a convenience store, against a full-line grocer like U.K.'s Waitrose. But its systematic approach to providing fresh, fast, accurate service is worth emulating in any channel of trade." - James Tenser, Principal, VSN Strategies
"Wawa has 500 stores in five states, and focuses on owning the land and buildings for its locations. The longest-lived retailers own their real estate, they don't lease it. Wawa's geographical concentration keeps its logistics, supervision, and promotional costs minimized." - Mark Lilien, Consultant, Retail Technology Group
"Wawa is an example of bigger is not always better. There may be many who are larger, but there aren't many who are better. They do an excellent job of training their people and my guess is that their turnover is lower than most. Their commitment to people, whether employee or customer, shows. They set standards, measure them and then act on the information... Retailers who listen to the consumer and deliver a good product and good customer service will turn the consumer into a customer. Wawa, talks the talk, but also walk the walk. Perhaps the biggest lesson to be learned from Wawa is to carry through on your commitment to people and service. Because if you do it, they will shop." - Bernie Slome, VP Business Development, ICC/Decision Services
"Wawa has always been unique and an innovator, so it doesn't surprise me that they'd be one of the innovators in private label in C-stores. This can only help them. They're hampered somewhat by their size so that they don't have the critical mass and hence economies of scale that some others do, but that hasn't held them back so far." - Warren Thayer, Editor, Refrigerated & Frozen Food Retailer; Contributing Editor, PL Buyer
"Wawa can be just as good a brand as Subway...and has license to cover more packaged items to boot. I probably wouldn't buy Subway chips or candy, but Wawa? Maybe." – Ben Ball, Senior Vice President, Dechert-Hampe
"There are many ways to succeed in retail and though many say the right things few do the planning and implementation required to consistently follow through and deliver. Wawa is one of the few." - Mike Tesler, President, Retail Concepts
Discussion Questions: What can others learn from Wawa? Is there something that you believe Wawa can pick up from another retailer as it heads into 2007?