Wawa opens new Fruitville Road store

The Pennsylvania-based convenience store chain brings 50 local jobs and its signature hoagies to downtown Sarasota.

By Andrew Warfield
| 10:00 a.m. February 5, 2023

Sarasota Mayor Kyle Battie and Special Olympian Mollie O’Connell, representing Florida at the World Games for cycling, help celebrate the new Wawa grand opening.

Sarasota
Business

With a measure of fanfare fitting for such an event, the long-awaited Wawa store at 2257 Fruitville Road opened last week. Members of the Sarasota Police Department, local first responders and Mayor Kyle Battie — along with Wawa’s mascot Wally Goose, helped the new store open its doors to customers for the fist time at 8 a.m. Feb. 2.

We may be SUB-par sandwich-makers but LETTUCE celebrate being back-to-back Hoagies for Heroes champions! 🥬🏆🍅🥪⛽️ We loved being a part of @Wawa's grand opening today at 2257 Fruitville & we're thankful for their $1,000 donation to the @SRQPoliceFdtn. #SarasotaPolice #Sarasota pic.twitter.com/fo6246vjiI
— Sarasota Police Department (@SarasotaPD) February 2, 2023

The Pennsylvania-based convenience store chain known for its fresh-prepared foods and signature hoagies is planning to open 75 stores throughout the Mid-Atlantic region and Florida in 2023. The new Sarasota store employs approximately 50 in full-time and part-time roles.

As a thank you to the community, customers can enjoy free coffee through Feb. 12.

author

Andrew Warfield

Andrew Warfield is the Sarasota Observer city reporter. He is a four-decade veteran of print media. A Florida native, he has spent most of his career in the Carolinas as a writer and editor, nearly a decade as co-founder and editor of a community newspaper in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina.