Wawa opens first Kentucky location near Okolona in Louisville

LOUISVILLE, Ky (WDRB) -- The grand opening of Kentucky's first Wawa was celebrated Thursday.

WDRB's Keith Kaiser joined some people getting excited about the new store.

Wawa celebrated the grand opening of its first store in Kentucky at 9650 Preston Crossing Boulevard, Louisville.

It's the 12th state to get a Wawa.

IMAGES | Grand opening held for new Wawa location in Louisville

The ribbon cutting ceremony kicked off FREE t-shirts to the first 250 customers and as supplies last FREE hot, any-size coffee from July 24th through July 27th.

Wally Goose made an appearance to greet the people and dance with the crowd.

Crews broke ground on the Okolona location last June. It's the first of eight stores set to open in Kentucky by the end of the year.

In the future, Wawa plans to build and open 5-8 stores per year in Kentucky with plans to open more than 40 stores in the state.

Wawa is known for its cheap eats, fresh food and beverage offerings, including coffee, smoothies, hoagies, pizza, burgers, soups and more.

Additional locations planned for the Louisville area include:

5229 Dixie Highway, near Kurz Way in Pleasure Ridge Park
7203 Apple Mill Drive, near the intersection with Outer Loop and Vaughn Mill
4213 Bardstown Road, near Fegenbush Lane
12415 Taylorsville Road, near the intersection with Sweeney Lane

While the Okolona location will be the first in Kentucky, it's not the first in the Louisville area. It's first regional location opened in May on Veterans Parkway in Clarksville, Indiana, as part of the company's expansion from the east coast.

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