If you’re thinking about starting a new business, you might want to consider joining the vending machine industry. Especially when you consider the industry hit a record earnings high of $21.6 billion in 2016. Yet if you don’t know much about vending machines, you might not know how to get in on the action.
Fortunately, setting up a vending machine business is something that doesn’t need a lot of expert knowledge.
Keep reading and I’ll provide you with a guide to getting into the vending machine business. Act on what you learn and you’ll have a profitable vending machine empire in before you know it.
Let’s begin!
Do You Need Money?
A vending machine business is clearly going to require that you fork out money for a vending machine. But if you don’t have any spare cash to make this happen, you might need to seek out financing.
Seeking out financing is a big decision, so you need to make sure you’re ready to take this step. If you have concerns over your ability to manage your money so that you can pay back a financing agreement, think about saving up money instead.
Keep in mind you don’t need to buy a vending machine brand new. There are places where you can source vending machines second hand. An example being eBay. A second-hand machine will cost you a lot less but still, provide you with the functionality you need.
Aside from the vending machine itself, you’ll need to save up money for maintenance costs. Odds are your vending machine is going to break at some point or another.
This is just the reality of being in the vending machine business. If you don’t have money to pay for repairs, as soon as the vending machine breaks, you will be losing money.
That’s because your vending machine won’t be able to process any orders. You, therefore, need to make sure you’re ready for a situation like this. Being prepared ahead of time will ensure you don’t lose a significant amount of money.
It’s also worth mentioning that you’ll likely need money to get licenses and permits. You may also need to pay money, depending on the location you place your vending machine in. Though in some situations, you’ll find that people request a percentage of profits rather than an upfront payment.
What Kind of Vending Machine Should You Invest In?
Once you’ve taken care of some of the financial details, you then need to think about the kind of vending machine you will be investing in.
Will you have a vending machine that provides candy and fizzy drinks? Or will it provide some other kind of food? You might even have a vending machine that is focused on providing healthy snacks. If you’d like to see an example of a vending machine that does this, check out HealthyYou Vending.
The location of your vending machine is going to have a big impact on the kind of vending machine you invest in. If your vending machine is next to a store, you’ll want to think about things the store fails to provide. You can then stock these items within your vending machine.
Obtaining Products
Your vending machine is no good if it doesn’t have anything to sell. You’ll want to find a supplier who is able to provide you with items that will entice your target customer.
It’s important you find a way to keep costs low. After all, the lower costs are the bigger your margin is going to be. In some cases, you can keep the costs low by ordering items in bulk.
Though you should be careful about doing this before you know that an item is going to sell. If you don’t validate a certain item/the location of your vending machine then it can lead to you have a lot of stock lying around. This will just amount to wasted money.
There’s a good chance you’ll need to transport items from your storage location to the actual machine. The items can be very heavy and so you might need to invest in a truck to help you get this done.
If you don’t own your own truck and you don’t want to buy one, you can always rent one. The truck shouldn’t cost you a significant amount of money as the costs can be kept within reason if you rent.
Sorting out the Paperwork
As mentioned earlier, you will need to spend some time getting the right kinds of paperwork.
What you need will depend on the location your vending machine is operating in. Take some time to reach out to the local authorities in your region. They’ll be able to tell you what you need. It’s important you don’t skip this step as doing so could lead to you being fined or facing even harsher consequences.
Monitoring Your Machines
You need to keep a close eye on your machines. You need to make sure that they’re working. You also need to keep a close eye on the kinds of products that are selling. Monitoring product sales can help you learn what you need to buy more of and what you need to buy less of, thereby making your business more efficient.
It can be a good idea to provide a form of contact information on your machines. This can make it easy for people to reach out to you with suggestions. It also makes it easier for people to notify you in case something goes wrong with the machine.
Time to Start a Vending Machine Business?
Starting a vending machine business is a big decision. But it’s a decision that can pay off in a big way if you get things right.
In this post, we’ve reviewed some of the things you need to think about if you want to run a successful vending machine company. You need to focus on how you’re going to fund your venture. You also want to pay attention to how you’re going to get the correct paperwork.
Location is one of the biggest factors that can impact the success of a vending machine business. If you pick the wrong location, it will be extremely hard to make money, no matter how good your vending machine is.
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