re: Anyone own vending machines?

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I own a lot of rentals and a law practice. Tell me something I don't know. Thankfully these 8 are at an army installation so not worried about thefts/vandalism/etc. We do plan to install small cameras on any we buy elsewhere though

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Be smart on where you expand to. I have no outdoor machines.

Nursing homes, public schools, community colleges, small tech schools, multi use office complexes. I don’t put machines where I may have break in issues.

Nursing homes or retirement homes are super damn busy around the holidays and in the summer. That off sets your loss of business from schools. Most colleges are year around.

Card readers are the ticket. You can track total sales, what’s selling great and what isn’t selling great. Also let’s you know how much product you will need to take with you on your filling trips. Five or six years ago it was a pain in the arse counting all that cash and coin as well.

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Thankfully these 8 are at an army installation so not worried about thefts/vandalism/etc. We do plan to install small cameras on any we buy elsewhere though

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8 in a good location is a different story. When I had them on properties I owned or managed were much better than ones at other businesses. The worst were at car washes but they had some high margin higher dollar items you could sell at those but they were by far the most attempted break ins at those. One guy that knows the weakness of your machine can wipe the entire thing out...

The business is fine, good margins, lower overhead but most people getting into them are just buying a PITA job with poor locations.

They gave you the machines for free!?!

I know you only have 8 machines…but if you plan to grow, the most important thing is getting legit suppliers.

I know I’ve mentioned it multiple times in this thread…but profit margin and lack of time/money spent on getting product is the #1 factor in vending.

Everyone points to machines breaking down and they do, and they will. That doesn’t make a shite if you’ve got the money to cover it. Really…fixing machines is not money wasted…I view it as investing.

What is wasting money…me having to go to Sams and spend two hours after my normal work day or on the weekend and buying product, after checking all the dates and also wasting money on 16.9oz sodas, or 12 Oz. Cans and then driving them to my storage, unloading, etc. Or paying someone to do that.

It’s worth the time to set up an account with a Vistar supplier in your region, finding the local bottling companies, doing your order online and having them deliver to you. You’ll have higher margins and a larger selection of product to choose from.

Once you get your feet wet with those 8 machines, start figuring out who you know and what they do. I had a family friend that owned 4 nursing homes and sold them 10 years ago. She still had a great relationship with the people she sold them to. Got the chance to get in front of them and guess what, they hated the people with their vending machines because their product was expired or machines always seemed to be empty or not working. I added 34 machines at those 4 facilities.

Consider the foot traffic of where you expand. Nursing homes roll 24-7. Nurses, administration areas, residents, visitors…especially visitors on the weekends and holidays…I don’t consider car washes or outdoor areas as viable vending options. I don’t want to rely on 20 Bubba’s washing mud off their trucks and hoping they buy a soda or an armoral sponge pad to put into my retirement. I want high traffic indoor areas that are secure, easily accessible, and where my female employee feels safe transporting $1k in cash in coin out of.

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Ultimate goal is to pay someone part time to collect the cash and re-fill.

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I had to start it that way...which sucked at first, but the cash flow when I bought the first 49 machines and the business was good enough that it did not put me in a pinch. I have two employees now. The one that works the most supplies her own van and I 1099 her.

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ALFs/nursing homes are a phenomenal idea.

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They are money making machines...but I lost my arse during Covid. I had about $50k in product expire that I donated to food banks. Those couple of years sucked honestly. Those facilities locked down and I just had to leave the machines empty. They let me in the facilities the first week of April 2020 to pull all our product and money. Let me back in July of 2021 and it was a cycle of good for a few weeks, then shut down for a month...All of 2022 has been back to normal thank goodness.

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Just curious, what do you normally pay per bottle/can from the distributors?

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Give me a sec and I will copy and paste from some of my orders to give you an idea. Like I told you earlier in the thread, Pepsi is pretty outrageous for wholesale prices.

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And is there a minimum you need to buy?

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Both Pepsi and Coke are in the same town as my warehouse, so no minimum. I mean, during Covid I would order like $200 of Pepsi and they'd still deliver. With Vistar, where I get chips and snacks, $750 is the minimum for delivery but they started this year adding a fuel surcharge.

FROZEN FOODS MrsFresh FLO00765FOA Honey Bun Grand Iced FOA 8/6 6 oz
CS 47.36 .9867 .00
FROZEN FOODS MrsFresh FLO48030622FOA Donut Chocolate Mini FOA 6/12 3.3 oz
CS 64.22 .8919 .00
FROZEN FOODS MrsFresh FLO48030632FOA Donut Powdered Mini FOA 6/12 3 oz
CS 62.27 .8649 .00
FROZEN FOODS MrsFresh FLO48030972FOA Donut Crunch Mini FOA 6/12 3.4oz CS 64.22 .8919 .00
FROZEN FOODS MrsFresh FLO48033450 Donut Stick 3 ct FOA 48 3 oz CS 42.17 .8785 .00
FROZEN FOODS MrsFresh FLO48053370FOA Dreamies Raspberry FOA 6/8 4 oz
CS 42.17 .8785 .00
FROZEN FOODS MrsFresh FLO48073950FOA Pie Cherry FOA 6/8 4.5 oz CS 43.46 .9054 .00
FROZEN FOODS MrsFresh FLO48074170 Pie Apple FOA 6/8 4.5 oz CS 43.46 .9054 .00
FROZEN FOODS MrsFresh FLO51075 Brownie Oreo FOA 6/8 3 oz
CS 48.98 1.0204 .00
FROZEN FOODS MrsFresh FLO5114776FOA Honey Bun Jelly Swirl FOA 6/9 4 oz CS 48.90 .9056 .00
FROZEN FOODS MrsFresh FLO5115513 Cupcake Chocolate 2ct FOA 6/6 4 oz CS 32.60 .9056 .00
FROZEN FOODS EdwardP SCF11704 Pie Chocolate Cream 12 5.34 oz CS 41.80 3.4833 .00
FROZEN FOODS EdwardP SCF11705 Pie Key Lime 12 6.5 oz CS 41.80 3.4833 .00
FROZEN FOODS Carando STF10195 Rip N Dip Cheese Mini 12 8.5 oz CS 35.99 2.9992 .00
GENERAL GROCERY Tapatio GEN01934 Sauce Hot Packet 500 7 gm CS 52.38 .1048 .00
REFRIGERATED Lunchabl OSC02455 Lunchable Turkey/Cheddar Crakr 16 3.2 oz
CS 28.45 1.7781 .00
REFRIGERATED Lunchabl OSC02458 Lunchable Ham/Cheddar Crakr 16 3.2 oz CS 28.45 1.7781 .00
REFRIGERATED Sargento SFS01903 Balance Break SrpChd/Cash/Cran 4/3 1.5z
CS 14.63 1.2192 .00
REFRIGERATED Oh Snap! TYB12338 Pickle Dill Fresh Snacking Cut 12 3.5 oz
CS 13.88 1.1567 .00
REFRIGERATED Oh Snap! TYB12339 Pickle Hot&Spicy Snacking Cut 12 3.5 oz CS 13.88 1.1567 .00
SNACKS Grandmas FRI10310 Cookie Big Chocolate Brownie 60 2.5 oz
CS 26.34 .4390 .00
SNACKS Lay's FRI17973 Chips Lays Dill Pickle 64 1.5 oz
CS 43.62 .6816 .00
SNACKS Lay's FRI25111 Chips Lays Ktl JalChdr 40%LsFt 64 1.375 oz
CS 42.10 .6578 .00
SNACKS Fritos FRI44353 Chips Fritos CornTwst Hny LSS 64 2 oz
CS 42.10 .6578 .00
SNACKS Fritos FRI44354 Chips Fritos Corn Chl&Chs LSS 64 2 oz
CS 42.10 .6578 .00
SNACKS Lay's FRI44358 Chips Lays BBQ LSS 64 1.5 oz
CS 42.10 .6578 .00
SNACKS Lay's FRI44359 Chips Lays Regular LSS 64 1.5 oz
CS 42.10 .6578 .00
SNACKS Lay's FRI44361 Chips Lays Sour Crm & On LSS 64 1.5 oz CS 42.10 .6578 .00
SNACKS Cheetos FRI44366 Cheetos Crunchy LSS 64 2 oz
CS 42.10 .6578 .00
SNACKS Cheetos FRI44367 Cheetos Crunchy JalpnoChdr LSS 64 2 oz
CS 42.10 .6578 .00
SNACKS Cheetos FRI44368 Cheetos Flamin Hot LSS 64 2 oz CS 42.10 .6578 .00
SNACKS Doritos FRI44374 Doritos Cool Ranch LSS 64 1.75 oz
CS 42.10 .6578 .00
SNACKS Doritos FRI44375 Doritos Nacho Cheese LSS 64 1.75 oz
CS 42.10 .6578 .00
SNACKS Tostitos FRI44380 Tostitos Bite Size LSS 64 2 oz CS 42.10 .6578 .00
SNACKS Munchies FRI44387 Snack Mix Cheese LSS 64 1.75 oz
CS 42.10 .6578 .00
SNACKS Funyuns FRI44399 Funyuns Onion Snack LSS 64 1.25 oz
CS 42.10 .6578 .00
SNACKS Sunchips FRI44428 Sunchips Garden Salsa LSS 64 1.5 oz CS 42.10 .6578 .00
SNACKS Grandmas FRI45091 Cookie Big Peanut Butter 60 2.5 oz
CS 26.34 .4390 .00
SNACKS Grandmas FRI45096 Cookie Mini Vanilla Creme 60 2.12 oz CS 25.43 .4238 .00
SNACKS Tostitos FRI47903 Dip Nacho Cheese Cup 30 3.625 oz
CS 37.60 1.2533 .00
SNACKS Tostitos FRI47906 Tostitos Salsa To Go 30 3.8 oz
CS 20.98 .6993 .00
SNACKS Gardetto GAR20026 Snak-Ens Original 60 1.75 oz CS 36.72 .6120 .00
SNACKS ChexMix GEM1240 Chex Mix Traditional 60 1.75 oz CS 36.72 .6120 .00
SNACKS ChexMix GEM12408 Chex Mix Cheddar Party Mix 60 1.75 oz CS 36.72 .6120 .00
SNACKS Ritz GEN11191 Chips Sour Cream & Onion 60 1.75 oz CS 38.12 .6353 .00
SNACKS Herrs HRR04268 Popcorn Cheese 30 .625 oz CS 13.85 .4617 .00
SNACKS Herrs HRR057 Chips Baby Back Rib LSS 30 1.5 oz CS 19.62 .6540 .00
SNACKS Herrs HRR06133 Chips Rppl Crmy Ranch&Habanero 30 1.5 oz CS 19.62 .6540 .00
SNACKS Herrs HRR307 Curls Cheese Jalapeno Poppers 42 1 oz CS 19.39 .4617 .00
SNACKS DoubleBa HUI53031 Stick Salami Double Barrel 100 1 oz CS 54.54 .5454 .00
SNACKS JackLink JLB00043 Steak Beef Teriyaki 56 .8 oz CS 57.62 1.0289 .00
SNACKS KarNut KAR08954 Trail Mix Nut N Yogurt Unslted 48 2 oz CS 32.85 .6844 .00
SNACKS KarNut KAR08955 Mix Fruit & Nut Tropical 42 2.5 oz CS 40.90 .9738 .00
SNACKS KarNut KAR08956 Mix Caramel Sweet n Salty 42 2.5 oz CS 40.90 .9738 .00
SNACKS KarNut KAR987 Snack Mix Sweet N Salty 72 2 oz CS 51.16 .7106 .00
SNACKS Cheez-It KEE12322 Crackers Cheez-It Big Bag 60 2 oz CS 38.51 .6418 .00
SNACKS Cheez-It KEE13434 Crackers Cheez-It Wht Ched BBB 60 2 oz
CS 38.51 .6418 .00
SNACKS FamousAm KEE98016 Cookie Chocolate Chip 60 2 oz
CS 27.94 .4657 .00
SNACKS Oreo MOZ00200 Cookie Oreo Sleeve Pk 6ct 4/30 2.4 oz 73.19 .6099 .00
SNACKS ChipsAho MOZ05222 Cookie Chips Ahoy SS 4/12 1.55 oz 30.27 .6306 .00
SNACKS NutterBu NFG037450 Cookie Nutter Butter Sleeve 4/12 1.9 oz
29.89 .6227 .00
SNACKS TGIFrida PBR30563 Potato Skins Chddr & Bacon 55 1.75 oz CS 29.68 .5396 .00
SNACKS TGIFrida PBR30630 Potato Skins Bacon Ranch 55 1.75 oz CS 29.68 .5396 .00
SNACKS Snyders SNY081100 Pretzels Jalapeno Pieces 60 2.25 oz CS 29.19 .4865 .00
SNACKS Snyders SNY081110 Pretzel Honey Mstrd Onion Pcs 60 2.25 oz CS 29.19 .4865 .00
SNACKS Lance SNY90128 Crackers Toasty Peanut Butter 6/20 1.29 oz 33.98 .2832 .00
SNACKS RudolphF SON00712 Pork Rinds Hot 60 .875 oz CS 24.19 .4032 .00
SNACKS RudolphF SON00713 Pork Rinds BBQ 60 .875 oz
CS 24.19 .4032 .00

Coke Products - $20.87/case
They informed me last week that prices would increase in 2023. That comes out to $0.87 per 20 oz. bottle.

Pepsi Products - $29.77/case
That comes out to $1.24 per 20oz. bottle.

Was going to copy and paste...but they looked worse than Vistar above. Reminder...Your energy drinks will run higher....also, Gatorade is much higher so I only sell Powerade, which is a Coke product.

It’s no big deal. Most of us have the same goal. Retire comfortably.

My goal is to be done at 50 with my career and have the vending business and my few rental properties support my living expenses and travel until I’m 65 or so and then get into retirement.

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I paid 5k for 4 501es and 4 USIs at a solid location. Installing credit card readers in the next couple of weeks. Only one machine is broken -- needs a new condenser.

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For something that is supposedly pretty lucrative, this seems like a steal.

What do you charge for powerade/20 oz bottles? Our main competition at this location is wawa so we want to keep the prices ~.3 to .5 cheaper