The newest Wawa in Ocala will celebrate its grand opening on Thursday, February 8, with an event that includes free coffee.
Located at 8380 SW Highway 200, near the intersection of SW 100th Street, the Wawa gas station is across the street from Bank OZK and the Friendship Center Shopping Mall.
On Thursday, the grand opening celebration will officially kick off at 8:30 a.m. with a ribbon-cutting event, followed by an introduction to the new Wawa team.
Attendees will be able to grab a free cup of coffee during the event. Beginning at 8 a.m., the first 100 people to arrive at the gas station will also receive a free T-shirt.
In addition, Wawa’s feathered mascot, Wally Goose, will be onsite and available for photo opportunities.
In the past five years, Wawa has opened multiple locations within Ocala. This will mark the company’s sixth, including three that opened simultaneously in 2019 at 3601 E Silver Springs Boulevard, 1001 S Pine Avenue, and 3312 W Silver Springs Boulevard.
Just a few weeks after the first three locations opened, Wawa opened a fourth location in Ocala at 4025 SW College Road.
The sixth Wawa in Ocala will open nearly four years after the fifth location opened in February 2020 at 3080 SE Maricamp Road.
The company’s growth has also not been limited to Ocala, with several locations added in nearby Belleview, The Villages, and Leesburg, among other cities across Central Florida.
Wawa joins several other national companies with brands that have seen steady growth in Ocala recently.
There are around eleven Shell gas stations, eight RaceTrac locations, and seven Sunoco locations across the city of Ocala.
Multiple 7-Eleven locations have also opened in Ocala in recent months, including one at 2655 SW 42nd Street in the Grand Oaks Town Center and another at 2590 SE Maricamp Road.