From CNN:
"Convenience store operator Wawa is testing a new store format as people look for contactless ways to shop during the pandemic.
"Wawa said the 1,850 sq-ft test store is expected to open in December in Falls Township, Pennsylvania. It's one of two drive-thru locations planned this year. (The other one will be in Westhampton, New Jersey).
"At the Pennsylvania store, shoppers will pull up to a drive-thru window to place their order and a Wawa employee will process payment and hand over their items, the company said. If the drive-thru line gets too long, or if someone has a large order, customers will be directed to curbside parking where the order is brought out to the car."
Wawa says that it was planning the concept before the pandemic but accelerated development once conditions changed and made it a potentially more powerful entry.
- KC's View:
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CNN notes that this is not an entirely new concept - Farm Stores, based in Florida, has had drive-through stores for some six decades (and happens to be moving north to the New York City area via franchising).
But it is a smart idea for Wawa to test, and could have real legs either as a standalone format or as an add-on to a traditional format.
