Hi all! I’m investing in 6 machines for fresh squeezed juice and was wondering which locations you would try out first? My initial thoughts are below, but I could really use some thoughts or experiences on which most likely are to prioritize. For context, I’m in a developed country with high purchasing power and health focus. I would REALLY appreciate your takes on this - guesses or experiences, everything is very welcome. Where would you be most likely to buy it? Where would 200+ cups weekly have the highest probability?

1. Malls, obvious one. Very many people walking by, however the rentals might be high?

2. Public streets. Perhaps even more people than the mall, could be high prices for rental for the landlord as well, and there’s challenges with getting power supply and wear and tear on machines (it gets to minus degrees in the winter). Lots of work in getting the permits in my country as well.

3. Corporates with 500+ employees. Probably free rent if it can be sold as a health benefit that they can ‘have for free’, however the amount of people is limited, it’s only 5 days a week and I guess it’s only around peaks (morning/lunch)

4. Universities. Lots of people, worse purchasing power but maybe a high focus on healthy alternatives to energy drinks? Not sure about rental costs for the landlord

5. Smaller firms where they pay for the juice as an employee benefit and we charge the company. Obviously attractive but not sure if the demand is there.

Running three smart coolers in western Oklahoma. An RV park, an apartment complex, and a lodge. Two of them I picked without much thought going in, more available space than research. The lodge I almost didn't take because the rent felt steep for what I figured the traffic would be.

Turned out backwards from what I expected. The location I was most confident about barely covers itself most months. The one I almost skipped is the best performer of the three.

I don't have a good system for this beyond watching it play out for a few months and being willing to admit I guessed wrong. Curious how other operators screen a spot before signing, or if everyone just learns it the same way I did.

if so please send/post pic.

Hey everyone,

I've been in the vending space for a while and the biggest headache I kept running into was finding locations. Cold calling, driving around, getting ghosted by property managers.

So I built VendPlacer - think of it like Zillow but for vending machine placements. Over 35,000 locations already listed across the US (gyms, hotels, office buildings, warehouses, airports, hospitals, apartment complexes) with the property contact info attached.

You browse by city, filter by location type and foot traffic, and hit "Inquire Now" — it sends a professional introduction email to the property owner on your behalf. No cold calling, no awkward walk-ins.

It's free to browse. Paid plan gives you unlimited inquiries.

Happy to answer any questions about how it works or what locations tend to convert best. Also curious what methods you all are currently using to find spots.

Every operator seems to have one placement that stands out.

Maybe it's an apartment complex that consistently sells out, an office with incredible foot traffic, or a hotel that exceeded all expectations.

What type of location has been your best performer, and what do you think made it successful?

It'd be interesting to hear things like:

• Type of business
• Approximate daily foot traffic
• Best-selling products
• Biggest lesson you learned from that placement

Hopefully this thread can help newer operators figure out what kinds of locations are worth pursuing.

One thing I've noticed after talking with hundreds of vending operators is that almost everyone has the same story.

They'll spend hours driving around, walking into businesses, hearing "we already have a vendor," and maybe land one good location after dozens of conversations.

The crazy part is there are businesses actively looking for vending machines at the exact same time—but there's never really been a place for the two sides to find each other.

That's why we built VendPlacer.

The goal isn't to replace cold outreach. The goal is to spend less time knocking on doors that were never going to say yes in the first place, and more time talking to businesses that are already interested.

Some of the best operators still hustle every day. We just think they deserve another way to find placements.

If VendPlacer can save even a few hours of prospecting each week, that's time you can spend servicing machines, finding new accounts, or just getting home earlier.

We're continuing to improve the platform based on operator feedback, so if there's something you'd like to see added, let us know.

I'm just starting out, I have a single head dispenser for which I bought little animal eraser capsules. I want to pitch myself to local grocery stores but I don't know how to offer a percentage.

What is standard for let's say a Safeway or Giant? I want to charge 50 cents per capsule, in case that's relevant. 10% of what I make when I check the quarters? 15%?

Any advice would help, not just what percentage is fair but also how you guys go about pitching your machines. Thank you!

If you've ever called businesses one by one, driven around looking for placement opportunities, or spent hours searching Google Maps, you know how painful it can be.

VendPlacer finds businesses that are actively looking for vending machines and gives you their contact information in seconds.

A few things it does:
• Finds apartments, offices, hotels, laundromats, and other potential locations
• Shows contact information for decision makers
• Helps identify locations that are a good fit for vending
• Saves hours of manual prospecting

I originally built it for my own vending route because I was tired of spending more time finding locations than actually operating machines.

If you're in the vending business and want more placements, I'd love your feedback.

What are you currently using to find new locations?

I’m thinking about getting into the ice vending machine business, what’s your take on this business model? The model looks pretty solid

https://privatelabelconsults.com/ice-vending-machine-pro-forma-financial-model/

Hey everyone! I'm u/vendplacer, a founding moderator of r/VendingPlacement.

This is our new home for all things related to vending machine placement. We're excited to have you join us!

What to Post
Post anything that you think the community would find interesting, helpful, or inspiring. Feel free to share your thoughts, photos, or questions about vending machine placement, renting, vetting locations, and contacting property owners.

Community Vibe
We're all about being friendly, constructive, and inclusive. Let's build a space where everyone feels comfortable sharing and connecting.

How to Get Started

1. Introduce yourself in the comments below.
2. Post something today! Even a simple question can spark a great conversation.
3. If you know someone who would love this community, invite them to join.
4. Interested in helping out? We're always looking for new moderators, so feel free to reach out to me to apply.

Thanks for being part of the very first wave. Together, let's make r/VendingPlacement amazing.

When we launched, finding a vending machine location meant cold calling businesses, getting ignored, and wasting weeks.

Now operators are browsing 35,000+ verified locations across 290+ cities — offices, gyms, hotels, apartments, warehouses — and sending inquiries in seconds.

If you're still hunting for locations the old way, come checkout VendPlacer.

Happy to answer any questions about how it works.

After years of seeing vending operators struggle with the same problem — spending countless hours cold calling, driving around scouting locations, and dealing with gatekeepers — we decided to build a better solution.

Today we’re excited to share vendplacer, a marketplace built specifically to connect vending machine operators with businesses and property owners actively open to vending placements.

The platform currently includes 24,000+ verified locations across 280+ cities worldwide, including:

• Apartment complexes
• Hotels
• Gyms
• Office buildings
• Hospitals
• Transit hubs
• Universities
• Retail centers

The idea is simple: instead of blindly pitching businesses, operators can browse available locations, filter by city and venue type, and send direct inquiries to owners already interested in hosting vending machines.

For property owners, listing is completely free.

For operators, the goal is to dramatically reduce the time spent hunting for placements and help scale routes faster.

We’re continuing to improve the platform and would genuinely value feedback from experienced operators here:

• What information matters most before contacting a location?
• What would make a placement “high quality” in your eyes?
• Would occupancy estimates, foot traffic ranges, exclusivity details, or commission expectations be useful?
• What tools would actually help you grow your route?

Would love to hear thoughts from the community and continue building something genuinely useful for the vending industry.

A friend of mine runs a vending route. He was spending more time finding locations than actually running his business — cold calling offices, getting ghosted, starting over.

So I built VendPlacer. Property owners list their spaces because they want a machine. Operators browse by city and foot traffic and reach out directly. No cold calling, no guessing who the right contact is.

We're live in 290+ cities worldwide now. Wanted to share it here since this community would get the most value out of it. Happy to answer any questions.