<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=3XgaJY_1Gpi4aia00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=3XgaJY_1Gpi4aia00" width="640" height="427" ><figcaption>Community members gathered Thursday morning to celebrate the opening of Laurinburg’s first Wawa, where cheers, music and plenty of excitement marked the occasion.</figcaption></figure>LAURINBURG — With cheers from the crowd, music from the Scotland High School band and Wally the mascot dancing through the excitement, Wawa opened its doors to the public for the first time in Laurinburg on Thursday morning.The grand opening celebration marked the company’s 81st store opening of 2026 and its 21st location in North Carolina, as Wawa continues an expansion across 14 states in the Mid-Atlantic, Southeast and Midwest. The company plans to open nearly 100 stores this year in recognition of the nation’s 250th anniversary.The first 100 customers through the doors received a free Wawa T-shirt, and the store will offer free coffee of any size through Sunday.Located at 1693 S. Main St., the new store brings a first-of-its-kind feature to North Carolina: Wawa’s “Fly Through” concept, which combines mobile ordering with a drive-thru.“This concept should create a much more convenient and time-saving experience for you,” said Jay Ratcliffe, Wawa’s director of store operations for North Carolina.Ratcliffe said the store’s location along U.S. 74, near the South Carolina state line, made Laurinburg an ideal fit for the company’s expansion plans.“When you look at this area, what we’ve come to understand is everyone comes into Laurinburg … We knew that was a perfect community balance for us,” he said.The company is eventually looking to expand into South Carolina, making Scotland County’s location an important part of that strategy.Ratcliffe said the enthusiasm surrounding Thursday’s opening reinforced the company’s decision to come to Laurinburg. He added that people familiar with the Wawa brand had expressed that they had been waiting a long time for the convenience store to arrive in the community.Beyond its investment in the community, Ratcliffe also highlighted the company’s focus on its employees, pointing to competitive starting compensation, benefits and incentives.Each new Wawa store represents an investment of more than $7.5 million in construction, with an average of 140 contractors and local partners involved in building the location. Once open, each store employs an average of 35 associates.Thursday’s celebration also featured a little friendly competition between two of Laurinburg’s public safety departments.The Laurinburg Fire Department came out on top in the Hoagies for Heroes competition, facing off against the Laurinburg Police Department to see which team could make the most hoagies.The winning team was set to receive a trophy, bragging rights and $1,000 for its charity of choice. Following the competition, organizers announced that both departments would receive the $1,000 prize for their respective charities.Wawa will stay open 24 hours, seven days of the week.</div></body>

Block Source: The Laurinburg Exchange

Misinformation

Clickbait

Old or repetitive news

Explicit content

Location not relevant

LAURINBURG — With cheers from the crowd, music from the Scotland High School band and Wally the mascot dancing through the excitement, Wawa opened its doors to the public for the first time in Laurinburg on Thursday morning. The grand opening celebration marked the company’s 81st store opening of...

Wawa makes big entrance on Laurinburg’s Main Street

NewsBreak

LAURINBURG — With cheers from the crowd, music from the Scotland High School band and Wally the mascot dancing through the excitement, Wawa opened its door

Wawa makes big entrance on Laurinburg’s Main Street

Comments