Wawa is headquartered in Chester Heights, Delaware County, and was founded in 1803 as an iron foundry. One hundred years later, it opened its doors as a Wawa milk processing plant.
Sheetz
is headquartered in Altoona, Blair County, and was founded in 1952 when Bob Sheetz bought one of his father's dairy stores. Wawa's proposed store in East Pennsboro is about 7 miles from the nearest Sheetz stores to the north in Duncannon and to the south on Erford Road, in the township of East Pennsboro.Sheetz opened his first store in 1952, when Bob Sheetz bought some of his father's dairy stores. Pennsylvanians have strong feelings for Wawa and Sheetz, two of the state's best-known and fastest-growing convenience store chains. Robert “Bob” Sheetz founded the chain in 1952 when he bought one of his father's dairy stores in Altoona. Draw a circle around the headquarters of the region's largest convenience store chains (Sheetz in Altoona, Wawa in Philadelphia and Royal Farms in Baltimore) and they'll intersect in Harrisburg, Lenard said.
Wawa, for the most part, covers parts of Pennsylvania that do not yet have rival stores, such as Sheetz, which Wawa is often compared to because of its similar business models and its roots in Pennsylvania. Now, at 2601 5th Avenue in Altoona, there is a judicial district judge, but that iconic aspect of the “Sheetz Building” is unmistakable.