PHILADELPHIA, Pa. – Chris Gheysens, CEO of Wawa, told NBC Philadelphia that the convenience retailer is working to get its store back on track after Hurricane Irma.
The news source writes that as of midday Tuesday, Wawa had about 85 of its 122 stores (about 70%) in Florida open for business, either fully open or just for fuel. “All the way down into Naples we just opened a couple weeks ago where the eye passed right over," Gheysens said.
A huge challenge right now for all of Florida is power. "Portable generators are really the way to go," Gheysens commented, adding, "There's always been a debate. Do you have generators in every store? Power comes in and out."
The news source writes that this week Wawa and The Wawa Foundation launched a 10-day in-store donation drive for Irma relief, and a similar fundraiser for Hurricane Harvey relief raised $700,000.
The campaign is being held in partnership with the American Red Cross and allows customers to help contribute to Hurricane Irma disaster relief by adding $1, $3, or $5 to their Wawa purchase at checkout. The campaign will run from Sept. 12 through Sept. 22 in all of Wawa’s 760-plus stores throughout Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia and Florida.
All donations made through The Wawa Foundation’s campaign will be donated to the Red Cross and will be designated specifically for Hurricane Irma disaster relief efforts. These funds will be used to help the Red Cross provide immediate and vital support to those communities suffering from the effects of Hurricane Irma.
“All of us at Wawa join the entire country in our support and hope that we can all weather these storms together. We believe we have a responsibility to provide assistance and aid to those in need, especially within the communities we serve. Wawa has always had a strong commitment to providing crisis response and assisting those in need, and we’ve been partnering with the American Red Cross in these kinds of efforts for decades,” said Gheysens.
In addition to customer donations, The Wawa Foundation will be making its own $250,000 donation to the campaign.