Wawa is abandoning its drive-thru experiment, replacing it with mobile order pickup windows called Fly Thrus, writes Emma Dooling for Philadelphia Business Journal.
The Delaware County convenience store chain is also planning larger travel centers to go with the ones already open in North Carolina, Indiana, and Ohio.
The mobile pickup windows will be part of new stores opening in the Midwest, with three Midwest stores offering the service now.
The concept allows customers to order from Wawa’s mobile app and pick up their order in as little as 30 seconds without leaving their cars.
Customers have been favoring mobile ordering in recent years, and the Fly Thrus will be an extension of that.
“We think the mobile pickup window is really where the future is,” said Wawa President Brian Schaller during the company’s annual Wawa Day on Thursday in Ridley Township.
Wawa had its first drive-thru in Bucks County back in 2021. It closed in 2024.
The drive-thru model proved too difficult to implement as it tried to match a fast pace with Wawa’s customizable and expansive menu.
Regionally, Wawa is offering the Fly Thru option at two stores in Langhorne and in New Jersey.
Read about Wawa’s continuing efforts to innovate and expand in the Philadelphia Business Journal.
