Wawa opened its first Indianapolis location Thursday, marking the convenience-store chain’s fourth store in Indiana.
The store is located at 3835 E. 96th St. in Marion County. Another Indianapolis location, at 5550 W. 86th St., is under construction and expected to open later this year.
- Wawa is No. 10on CSP’s 2025 Top 202 ranking of U.S. c-store chains by store count.
“We are grateful to the Indiana community for embracing us with open wings when we opened our first three stores in the state in May,” said Brian Schaller, president of Wawa. “We are excited to continue to serve the Indiana community with our first store in the city of Indianapolis.”
The Wawa, Pennsylvania-based company entered Indiana in May, opening stores in Daleville, Noblesville and Clarksville. By the end of 2025, Wawa expects to have eight locations operating in the state, with additional sites planned in Brownsburg, Cumberland, Plainfield and Westfield.
Over the next six years, the company plans to open between eight and 12 stores annually, with a goal of reaching 60 locations in Indiana. Each new store represents an investment of more than $7.5 million and employs about 140 contractors during construction. Once operational, each site will employ an average of 35 associates. Wawa estimates its Indiana expansion will create 2,000 new long-term jobs.
The chain is also building stores in Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Virginia, North Carolina and Georgia.
Wawa has approximately 1,100 locations open in eight states: Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, Florida, North Carolina and Alabama, as well as Washington, D.C.
Industry growth across Indiana
Wawa is among several convenience-store chains expanding their footprints in Indiana and across the Midwest.
In July, Atlanta-based Majors Management LLC entered the state by acquiring 35 retail fuel and convenience-store locations from Circle K owner Alimentation Couche-Tard. The company plans to rebrand the sites to MAPCO in the coming months.
Other chains have also staked claims in the Hoosier State. EagleStores, a subsidiary of Dayton, Ohio-based R&R Takhar Oil Co., entered Indiana in June with the purchase of a site in Princeton. The company, which operates more than 80 gas stations and convenience stores in Ohio, said it intends to continue expanding through acquisitions, new builds and dealer partnerships.
QuikTrip Corp., Tulsa, Oklahoma, opened a travel center in Daleville in April, marking its entry into the state. The company now operates 1,117 stores across 20 states.
In December, Oklahoma City-based Love’s Travel Stops opened a new site in Michigan City, Indiana.
RaceTrac debuted in Indiana the same month with a store in Lawrence, followed by a second location in Indianapolis in June 2024. The Atlanta-based company said its Indiana presence reflects its broader goal of expanding beyond its Southeastern roots.
Also in December, Ankeny, Iowa-based Casey’s opened two Indiana stores, one in Madison and one in Evansville.
In September, Hop Shop, owned by Valor Oil, opened its first Indiana store in Rockport, near the Kentucky border.
Wally’s opened its first Indiana location in August in Whitestown.
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