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Diving certificate:
- Wally’s began construction last week on its third travel center and its largest store to date, President and CEO Michael Rubenstein confirmed Thursday. This will be Wally’s first location in Indiana.
- The location on Perry Worth Road in Whitestown, Indiana, will feature a 50,000-square-foot store, 84 gas stations and about 300 parking spaces, according to Rubenstein.
- Wally’s is building larger stores with companies like Rutter’s and Wawa, allowing it to offer more storage units and on-site amenities.
Diving insight:
Wally’s debuted in 2020 with a 30,000-square-foot store in Pontiac, Illinois, before opening a 34,000-square-foot location in Fenton, Missouri, in 2022.
Wally’s was scheduled to break ground on the proposed 4,100-square-foot store in Indiana in 2023, Rubenstein said at the time. However, groundbreaking did not occur until this year and the store’s square footage was increased.
There were no specific reasons for the construction delay, “other than the approval of the site and the access road and the perfection of the site and the store,” said Rubenstein.
At 5,200 square feet, the Indiana location will be nearly 50 percent larger than the Missouri store. Management sees the move to larger stores as a major shift in the industry.
“Large concept stores with lots of open space are the future,” said Rubenstein last year.
This location, just off Interstate 65 at the Route 267 exit, is about 21 miles northwest of downtown Indianapolis. There is already a Love’s Travel Stops & Country Stores location at the intersection, and a GetGo Cafe + Market and Marathon gas station are also in the area.
The site will also have about 20 charging stations for electric vehicles and larger parking spaces for vehicles such as RVs or boat tows, Rubenstein said.
Meanwhile, the c-store will feature what Rubenstein calls “interactive food stations,” including Wally’s Sandwich House, as well as popcorn, bakery and pizza stands. Wally’s stores are traditionally divided into several zones, with areas for items such as traditional c-store merchandise, fresh produce and Wally’s-branded goods.
