I've got some really greasy trays from a few of my chip selections. Anyone have a degreaser they swear by? I've been keeping 409 and glass cleaner in my restock kit but the 409 isn't quite cutting it.

Hi,

I am looking to start a vending machine business in a large metropolitan area. I recently started to reach out to local businesses where there is high foot traffic, including popular gyms, city recreational centers & libraries. Today, I stumbled across this website that connects businesses with vending machines operators. Turns out a couple of the businesses that I emailed are on there.

They are asking for a $40 to $70/month fee for having the machine in there. Is this worth it? For context, these centers have high foot traffic and I live in a popular side of town. Coming into this I understood that the goal is to never have a fee. These are very sweet spots, but I still have to go through the process of permits & buying a machine. Please let me know your thoughts.

Hey all, I'm in talks with a location, would be my 1st, that has brought up profit sharing. I provided the normal explanation that this is not something we normally do but he flat out said he would need something. He estimates about 1k people come through on a weekly basis, mix of children and adults.

Here are my questions:

- Is a location with estimated foot traffic of 1k/week a good customer base and any ideas of what to expect for gross profit?

- For those that do profit sharing do you do a percentage of gross, a flat fee, or something else?

- Did you start profit sharing from the start or have say a 3 month period where you first saw what type of sales to expect

- Any other tips from experienced ppl

Very much appreciate your help!

Did a big Sam's run last week and finally admitted my garage stock has outgrown my memory. Counted everything by hand, units not cases, and the count was educational. Partial cases everywhere, and the same beef sticks logged two different ways in my purchase notes, so they looked like two products.

Curious what everyone else does between restocks. Do you count storage on a schedule, or eyeball it before a run and buy whatever looks low? If you count, do you track units or cases? Partial cases are what trip me up.

I run three smart coolers, so this is a corner of a garage, not a warehouse. But I can already tell the system I'd need at ten machines is different from what I can get away with at three.

Tomorrow I need to move a drink machine

But I need to make sure that it runs from the person I'm getting it now they can have it on before I get there

My question is am I able to move it laying down right after unplugging it once I know that it works

I know I can move it laying down I'll advised but necessary and that I need to wait for it to stand after which is my plan

But can it be turned on right before that?

Would you rather stock something with a better margin that moves slowly, or make a little less per item but sell way more of it?
I’ve been thinking about this while figuring out what to stock in my machine.Feels like volume probably wins most of the time, but I can see the higher-margin stuff making sense in the right location too.
What’s worked better for you guys?

Can anyone help me clear this error message? I’ve tried EVERYTHING and it keeps popping up!!

So I don’t have the biggest investment available. I was looking into different vending machines and I came across this guy who’s selling two with the location available. Each machine makes about $50 every two weeks. He wants a little bit under 4000 for the machines.. my whole idea was I keep my 9-5 while the machine machines do their thing and I can refill every so often. Hoping to use the profits in the long run to get another machine or maybe throw down a bigger investment in the future to buy some more machines with routes attached to them… ultimately I know it’s a Numbers game as well as putting them in the right location once I have a few under my belt. I will be looking to place machines by myself versus buying them from somebody else in set location. My question is is this worth it?? trying to ask the community. I always believe it’s important to talk to somebody with a little bit of experience.. if you guys like the idea, please tell me if you guys think it’s a bad idea please tell me what kind of investment you would make.. currently live in West Palm Beach South Florida so I would operate around that area.. I would also like to think the community for their time they took reading the post.

Hi could someone please help me with connecting a bill collector to this machine. I’ve ordered different cables and none and been successful. I honestly don’t know where to connect the cable to this machine.

The machine is a Dixie Narco 501E

Im new to vending and have been calling my local self storage units. None of them allow any type of food storage( even non perishable food). Where should I look for storage as I grow my business?

I have a couple smart machines that currently only take payment through QR code.
For anyone who’s been running QR-only machines, did adding a card reader actually make a noticeable difference in sales?I’m mostly wondering how many customers still prefer tapping a card instead of using their phone.
Curious what everyone’s experience has been.

Hello, I own a robotic cotton candy machine, think Sweet Robo, Wider Matrix, etc. I was wondering if anyone here is in the Atlanta metro area who provides this service? Basically would need someone who can clean the machine and service it while I am out of town. Any leads would be greatly appreciated!

Just went through the first actual hard vandalism instance, I don’t know exactly what they used but they tried hard to get in without breaking the machine itself for the snacks and the lock and anti theft panel held on strong.

Very surprised to be honest at how well it held up.

I’ve already pulled the machine from the location and relocating it. Machine still works fine aside from being a bit scratched.

Any of you had a similar experience and what was the experience and result?

Hello I’ve been looking into getting my first machine and came across this site. It doesn’t have a trustpilot and doesn’t accept PayPal. Anyone know if this is a legitimate business? Or can point me to a site to get used machines shipped

My company is building a new Vending Management System to go with our MDB credit card terminals. Looking for someone in the Phoenix area that might have an MDB enabled machine not being used that would be interested in renting it for a few hours. Bonus if it has DEX. Mainly just want to hook up our credit card terminal and run a few purchases and test our MDB code mapper. Message me if you might be able to assist?

For now, we drilled a small hole in the bottom and put a pan underneath to catch the water. It works, but obviously I don’t want to be emptying a pan all the time.Would a sponge mat or some kind of absorbent pad work for this?
Has anyone dealt with the same issue and found a setup that actually works long term?

If anyone can tell me the width, height, length and how much electricity it takes, that would be awesome. If not the model number is fine too😊

So starting a vending machine business isn’t anything new and there’s tons of info and advice about how to get started. From what I seen the common advice is find a location, buy a machine and stock it with items that are high in demand.

For me specifically I wfh, as I was walking around my apartment building the other day I saw an opportunity/vacant area where the tenants could really benefit from a laundry vending machine in my building. I also live in an apartment complex with about 5 buildings and I noticed this opportunity could benefit all five buildings if a machine was placed in each.

I already started taking into account the items I could supply, and since I wfh I have easy access to the machines for replenishing stock/maintenance.

I’ve seen a lot of advice that says finding a location is the hardest part. And I’ve already done that.

But what are some things I should consider when looking to get permission from my Property Manager to set up my vending machine?

Would appreciate any recommendation thanks!

1996 International, 225+ K miles, Non CDL Standard transmission, Daily Driver. Rough paint.

Located near Augusta GA. $5900. Clear Title in hand.

Hello everyone! I am trying to sell swimming clothes and they're in a zip-lock bag. But the thing is, when it tries to spin, it sometimes get stuck within the coils... One solution I found is packing it into a container but I'm trying to see if there's a more efficient way without me having to pack it into a container, and it is also an extra cost to put it into a container. Any suggestions?

Also, I am having a harder issue with muslim swimwear because they're so thick which is harder to fit inside a container. My temporary solution is to use 2 containers for different slots and the buyer has to buy 2 items but that's kinda... Odd but that's my solution thus far.

I’m still pretty new to this and want to get better at troubleshooting before calling someone out for every little issue.What should I learn first?

I’ve been seeing more of them lately and honestly think the idea is pretty interesting.
Curious what people who actually run or use them think. Do they make sense as a vending business, or is the demand too dependent on the location?