For all those impatient people out there, know that Wawa is making strides to accommodate you. Everyone who patronizes the convenience stores knows how long the lines can get, especially around lunchtime. This makes for annoyed customers and employees alike.
To help mitigate that, the Pennsylvania-based chain is now testing something that might cut down on the wait: portable checkout kiosks.
Inside the Wawa at Broad and Walnut this week, some customers were able to skip the regular queue and jump over to a separate checkout counter — a miniature one, on wheels. The line cheat came with one caveat: no cash payments.
Set on rolling swivel casters, the moveable setup consisted of a small table area where drinks or food or other purchases could be placed to be rung up. It was also outfitted with a barcode scanner, a credit card reader and a plastic bagging station, all within a total footprint no bigger than an old mailbox.
Behind the kiosk on Monday, a staffer named Matt held an computer tablet that he used to enter food items for purchase. “We’re testing this out,” he said. “Seems to be going ok so far.”
According to Matt, the Broad Street store is the only one in Philly currently trying out the mobile registers, along with a couple of the busier stores at the Jersey Shore. In Center City, everyone he’d called out of line to try the new method had enjoyed their speedy exit, he said.
Wawa corporate spokesperson Lori Bruce confirmed to Billy Penn that the company is officially giving the checkout alternative a try.
“We are always testing new ways to improve convenience and the customer experience,” she wrote via email, adding, “[A]t this time, we don’t have a lot of details available.”
