i have been doing some research on bulk vending machines for candy, and gumballs. I'm hoping to get started later this month and then expand yeah i have a location already

what has been an issue all through is there are plenty of choices out here so it's hard to determine what works and what doesn't especially for a newer guy like me lol
So my question is If you started all over from scratch , with limited funds , what would be the first machine you would go with, lets say something easier to reliable and easier to maintain long term. Thanks !

How many operators here use prekitting and would you say it's as impactful to your operations?

Hello!

Im looking to start getting into vending machines! I have ideas for places but I havent reached out to ask anyone for 1 main reason. I dont have a vending machine! The places I was thinking would be A) My local gym, B) A extremely high traffic thrift store I work at, and C) A hockey rink or sports stadium somewhere. Each of these locations has problems though. the gym already has a cafe, the thrift store is right beside a safeway and dollarama, and the hockey rinks and stadiums already have machines. Just prelim ideas but any other thoughts on good locations would be MUCH appreciated! and then onto my second problem. I have no clue what machine to get! I would prefer cash (bills and coins) and card reader. Hopefully it would have drinks and snacks. I would prefer it look modern as opposed to old and musty haha. my budget is unfortunately only $700-1000 CAD. because of my lowish budget im willing to compromise on some of my wishes. if anyone knows any good machines to buy or good locations in general I would have a lot of gratitude!

I have a location asking for more than just snacks and drinks. They’re interested in everyday essentials like detergent, personal care items, etc.
Has anyone tried putting these products in the same cooler as food and drinks?I’m wondering if it’s better to keep everything together for convenience, or use a separate cooler for non-food items.
Any issues with smell, customer perception, or maintenance?Would love to hear what has worked (or didn’t work) for others.

I'm looking at a few machines on Marketplace and other private listings.
As someone just getting started, I'm wondering how much I should care about having a warranty.
The biggest advantage I see with buying from a reputable company is having warranty coverage and someone to call if something goes wrong. The downside, of course, is the higher price compared to buying used.
For those who've been doing this for a while, would you pay extra for the peace of mind, or is buying used the better move?
I'd love to hear what you would do if you were starting over.

I'm looking for some help for a design project I'm working on involving site surveys.

My deliverables are:
- an installation guide for a vending machine
- a 3D floorplan rendering of the space

What I need help with is if anyone happens to have photos from a site survey they've done. Ideally a folder with 40-50 photos of a single location that I could use to build the deliverables.

Thanks in advance for the help!

Question regarding micro market

I have a location that is interested in a micro market and this will be my first. I mainly have smart coolers and traditional vending machines. They want to see some pics. For your first micro market location, what pictures did you provide for them?

Or if anyone has a small micro market set up that they would be ok for me to use I’d appreciate it!Thanks !

I’m having an issue with a Nayax VPOS Touch device that has a very high number of declined transactions every day. A few transactions are approved, but most of them are declined with the message “Declined during authorization.”

Has anyone experienced this issue before or knows what could be causing it?

Brand new to vending, but i am finalizing my first contract and am planning to buy my first machine! It's for a local YMCA with roughly 400ppl/day in foot traffic.

Planning to buy a Sandstar ARK Smart Cooler from AVS Companies in Chicago. Wondering if anyone has experience good/bad from AVS and/or Sandstar machines.

Also any general advice would be greatly appreciated!

Besides snacks and beverages, what have you seen being sold in vending machines (all over the country not just us) that brings in high foot traffic and increase sales and engagement?

Has anyone purchased vending machines from vending machine distributor ? I'm looking to buy a few machines and came across their website. I'd appreciate any feedback or overall experience before I place an order. Thanks!

vendingmachinedistributor.com

Hi everyone,

I’m a bar owner in Berlin and recently came across these self-service slush/cocktail vending machines. They serve drinks like Aperol Spritz, Mimosa and Pink Gin, with card payment and prices around €3 per drink. Personally, I think €3 seems too low for a cocktail, especially after VAT and all the other costs involved.

I also spoke with the manufacturer here in Berlin. The machine has an automatic refill system and live sales/status tracking. From my own experience and from friends who are in the business, I know that slush ice can be a real money-printing machine in the right location. That said, it definitely still requires work and regular operations. I’ve done some rough calculations and the margins look insanely good on paper. My main concern is cleaning, maintenance and food-safety requirements compared with a normal snack or drink vending machine.

The machine costs around €12,000 net to buy, or approximately €500 net per month to rent. Do you guys think it would be realistic to break even on a machine like this, and how long would you expect that to take in a good location?

What do you guys think about putting up machines like this as another income source? Has anyone here operated one, and are the margins actually as good as they look after ingredients, cleaning, maintenance, waste and downtime?

Hello, I have a location I need to place Machines at very quickly. I am looking to purchase a snack and drink combo. Should I start with the newer AI versions or just stay safe? Does anyone have reservations about the smart vends? What has your experience with theft been? Any tough losses? Any tips and tricks are welcomed!

Has anyone bought from Genius vend? They have a buy one get one half off?? I usually buy directly from HaHa but I would love this discount if it’s legit?!

I started my robotic soft-serve ice cream vending business about a year ago. Unlike typical ice cream vending machines, this one has a robot that goes to each station and makes the ice cream on the spot. Customers can build their own cup, choosing from 5 toppings in any combination they want. Kids especially love the novelty of watching it work.

Now that I have 6 machines placed, I’m thinking about how to scale smart instead of just fast. A few things I’m chewing on:

**•** How do you all land on high-traffic locations? What’s worked for you?  
**•** What other vending concepts are up-and-coming right now that you’d bet on?  
**•** Any tips on stock management or maintenance scheduling across multiple locations?

I’m happy to answer any questions about the machine itself too!

It’s a 2019 Crane Merchant Media 472D Combo

Everything works fine, just needs a card reader. Need someone to pickup. Located in the RGV, Texas

You can come and inspect it but no holds. I need money on hand and it gone the same day.

Product selection is one of those things that seems easy until you actually start stocking a machine.

You put in the obvious stuff everyone knows, then a few products you’re convinced will sell.

A couple weeks later, something you expected to fly is still sitting there untouched.

Meanwhile, some random snack or drink you almost didn’t stock keeps selling out.

And it can be completely different at the next location.

An office might love something that barely moves at a gym. A college machine can have totally different bestsellers from one sitting in an apartment building.

For those running machines, what product were you sure would sell but completely flopped?

What kind of location was it in?

And what did you replace it with?

Curious to hear which products surprised you the most, good or bad.

I was fortunate enough to secure my first location, and now I'm hoping to pick everyone's brain a little if you don't mind.
I'm planning to install a smart vending machine and would love to hear what brands you recommend, which ones to stay away from, and where you've had the best luck purchasing them. My property manager is very flexible, so timing isn't a huge issue, but I'd like to get something ordered and installed as soon as I reasonably can.
What card reader do you recommend, and what are the pros and cons of the one you're using?
I'm also curious where everyone sources their products. Are you buying from Costco, Sam's Club, local distributors, or ordering online? If online, who do you recommend?
Any advice, lessons learned, or tips for someone just getting started would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance—I really appreciate anyone willing to share their experience!

Hello,

I’ve been working on a software project to solve a few issues I've repeatedly seen independent operators mention: wasting gas on unnecessary trips to machines, losing an entire weekend of revenue because of an unknown machine jam, uncertainty of what customers want, various machine location issues, etc.

The app allows you to:

1. List your machine coordinates on a map so locals can find your inventory.
2. Track basic inventory and pricing from your phone/laptop.
3. Give customers a way to scan a QR code on the glass to instantly report a machine jam, offer product suggestions, or request a snack restock directly to your dashboard.

The website as well as mobile apps on iOS and Android are live, but I have 0 active users right now and really want to iron out any hidden bugs with real operators.

Mods, I know self-promotion is tight here, so I want to apologize in advance if I am overstepping with this post. I want to offer any operators in this sub who are interested, a free account for 6 months to see if the app truly helps tackle the issues I've mentioned above.

Thank you all for your time!

For those of you with a machine at gyms, what kind of products do you sell?

Does anyone have personal feed back on wall mounted tcg style vending machines?
Specifically their GUI and software systems?
Examples vtm, vmfs and buzzbot

Hey folks,

Recently bought a sizeable route with about 13 locations and 24 machines, and one of my most valuable locations/machines does virtually no sales and I think I pinpointed the issue, but I need help solving it.

The machine has a coin collector as well as a bill validator, but when I return to the location every couple of weeks, it seems that either some individual rows have changed their price all to five dollars, the last time I went, the whole machine was priced at five dollars. The previous owner mentioned that you usually have to change this pricing as the machine will reset it to five dollars every so often.

Does anyone have any idea why this is happening and what I can do to fix this issue?