“It’s a Wawa World.” This statement isn’t news to me –or our wonderful associates – but thanks to a prominent feature in the August 2011 issue of Philadelphia Magazine, more people are buzzing with talk about “a Wawa World.”
I have to say that this feature displayed our true essence in a way that few have ever captured in the printed word. To truly know and love Wawa is to understand what a unique and magical place it is—a place that has transcended the boundaries of a typical convenience store and, as Philadelphia Magazine puts it, “has achieved cult-like customer devotion that every consumer brand on the globe dreams about.” It’s often difficult to express what Wawa means to our customers and associates, and it was thrilling to see that Don Steinberg, from Philadelphia Magazine, managed to perfectly express that for readers.
Very fittingly, the article begins by describing one of our steadfast customers who admits “when he was getting the Wawa logo tattooed on his right inner bicep, the second ‘wa’ kind of hurt.” Now that’s what we call customer loyalty! And this is just one of the many stories Philadelphia Magazine cites as a testament to what some would consider a “convenience cult.” While the devotion of our customers has always been referred to as cult-like, this term seemed to stick after we were featured in the 2006 New York Times article “Convenience Cult,” which the Philadelphia Magazine piece goes into detail about.
The article boasts dozens of Wawa successes, such as the continuous in-store improvement to maximize speed and customer experience, our striking sales statistics, our positive impact on local economies and community organizations, our growing list of store locations and the unparalleled customer service provided by our associates. But, more than anything, it shows that we are a living brand. A brand customers can taste, touch and feel on a regular basis. No matter how our customers show their adoration, whether it be as a Facebook fan, a daily shopper, or through body art, our customers personalize our brand to make it their own.
Drilling down to heart of our company, what really makes the “Wawa World” go round is our people. It’s our 17,000 incredible associates who make up the Wawa family and embrace our core value, and it’s our wonderful customers, more than 400 million annually, who brighten up our stores and honor us with their faithful patronage. I would be remised if I didn’t thank our customers and associates alike for loyalty and friendship.
Wawa truly is a magical place and this article does a wonderful job of capturing some of the intangibles that make us so special. But don’t take my word for it…read it for yourself! http://www.phillymag.com/restaurants/articles/it_s_a_wawa_world/