A vending machine business is a simple yet profitable pursuit that most anyone can undertake, regardless of education, background, or income level.  However, as with any business venture, there are issues that should be recognized before jumping into the industry.  Individuals with the entrepreneurial spirit understand that business often involves taking risks, and the vending business, though relatively reliable, does have some potential risks.

The Pros of Owning a Vending Machine Business

The most important positive attribute for most owners is the freedom that being your own boss provides.  No more clocking in at an office, sitting in a cubicle, bowing to the whims of a critical boss, or dealing with office politics.  Owning any business provides freedom; with a vending business, you are free to set your own hours, work when and where you want, and by purchasing as many or as few machines as you want, work as much as you need.

Another positive for most owners is the money.  Placing a few pieces of equipment in a few select locations will not make you rich, but should serve as a good second income. Placing several machines in several profitable locations, will not make you wealthy, but can make you independently self-employed.   Expanding your reach with more machines, can significantly boost your income and perhaps move you into another tax bracket!

The Cons of Owning a Vending Machine Business

The initial downside is the upfront money needed to start in the business. Though it is possible to buy smaller and cheaper machines, this is not usually the best way to go because this type of equipment does not generate as much income. Many people will have to finance the equipment to start a business; financing allows you to start without shelling out a pile of cash, but loans are still liabilities on the balance sheet and money that you owe.

Unless you are a great salesperson and do not have issues with cold calling businesses to place your machines, another outlay of cash needs to be on a vending locator service.  Though you can do all your own placements, letting vending placement experts do the job for you will get your machines in ideal locations so they can immediately begin generating income.

Most entrepreneurs understand that it takes wise choices and well-researched investments to make money.  It often follows that the more machines you purchase, the more revenue you will see.  Paying a vending location service also pays dividends, but requires additional money.  Just like any business endeavor, it takes money to make money!

The other downside to the business is the potential costs subsequent to starting.  Theft and vandalism are a common problem; products have to be replaced and equipment has to be repaired which will reduce profit amounts.  Even if machines are never vandalized, they will still require repairs from time to time.

The vending machines business is no different than any other type of personal business - it takes hard work, dedication, a little bit of luck, some quality advice, and an understanding of the benefits and the risks.  The more you know before you start, the more  likely your chances for success.

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Would you purchase your weekly vegetables and meat from a vending machine?  Most Americans would cringe at the very idea; they like to pick up the packages of meat and inspect them before buying, or they want to squeeze and study a vegetable before dropping it into the shopping cart.  But, the Japanese are perfectly fine putting some yen into a machine and getting back some fresh vegetables and meat.

Americans love to eat eggs, but would they enjoy their omelets and scrambled eggs as much if they were purchased those tasty ovals from a vending machine? Yes, in Japan you can buy eggs from a food service machine. No, they don't slide down onto a tray and crack open; they merely sit on a shelf, and once the correct amount of change has been inserted, the door can be opened and the eggs are ready to take home.

Another item that Americans might find odd to be found in a vending machine is ice cream. It's like the Good Humor truck without wheels and the goofy looking guy in white.  Are your young children having a bad day? Stop by the kiosk selling stuffed animals and put a smile on their faces. Or if you forgot to get a gift for your wife on her anniversary, you can find a vending machine dispensing flowers, and you will avoid the doghouse at the last minute. If the kids are still driving you nuts, find a vending machine that sells beer and have a Japanese beer and forget your troubles.

Other oddities that can be obtained from vending equipment are souvenirs, neckties, batteries, umbrellas, gloves, and lingerie.  Not sure if the wife will enjoy receiving lingerie from a vending machine, but if you also give her the flowers, she may overlook that romantic faux pas.

By looking at the items that are sold from Japanese vending machines, American entrepreneurs may get some great ideas. You may want to skip the lingerie, but others products might be worth consideration. People laughed at the Wright brothers, experts scoffed at the notion that the Earth revolved around the sun, and authorities placed Galileo under house arrest for his ideas; sometimes those people thinking outside the box know what they are talking about.  Often crazy ideas are just that, crazy, but sometimes crazy ideas make someone a pile of money.

Vending machines are here to stay, and though they may not be quite as ubiquitous here as they are in Japan, the future for new and innovative vending ideas is now. If you decide to take a chance and use your vending machines for new and different items, it is worth the money to hire a vending locator service to place your machine in the ideal location. Together you can change the world of coin-operated machines and make a fortune!

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 Could healthy vending be the next big thing in the industry? Is a healthy snacking revolution on the horizon?  Over a third of Americans are obese and another third are classified as overweight.  This excess weight costs us nearly an extra $200 billion per year in medical bills and this amount will continue to grow unless we change the way we eat.  Snacking is where many people, even if they try to eat healthy meals, really go for the junk food, and vending machines are one of the main culprits in shaping the way we eat snacks.  But, all this is beginning to change.

Healthy vending is a way to make nutritious food as convenient as junk food. People at work, at the gym, in a customer service lobby, or just on the go, look to vending machines for that quick bite to eat between meals. If all they find are potato chips, sodas, crackers, and candy, then they either go hungry or consume something they really don't want to eat.  However, if there is a bright, new, modern-looking piece of vending equipment waiting to dispense healthy alternatives to traditional snacks, then those individuals looking for more nutritious food, will have a viable option.

What are Healthy Vending Snacks?

There are a variety of items to select from when seeking healthier options for vending equipment. One of the best ways for entrepreneurs to find out more about healthy snacks is to visit the Natural Products Expo. The Natural Products Expo East is held at the Baltimore Convention Center in Baltimore, Maryland, and the Natural Products West is held at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, California. At these Expos, savvy business people can learn how to boost profits while also selling more nutritious and healthy snacks.

One of the healthy options to consider would be to substitute juices, low-calorie drinks, or natural drinks for sodas.  Water and flavored water are also great options, as are natural sodas sweetened with stevia, an all-natural, zero-calorie sweetener.  Nutrition bars and protein bars serve as good substitutes for chips, candy, and crackers. Natural, baked chips with zero trans fat can replace those tasty, yet very heart-unhealthy and diet-busting potato chips. Other products that can be used are carrots and dip, carrots and hummus, yogurt, string cheese, nuts, smoothies in a bottle, and apple slices.

According to a Fitness magazine article, their top pick for healthy snacks are sunflower kernels, with baked chips, whole-grain chips, and pretzels the next best choices. The worst snacks were an apple fruit pie, followed by crackers with cheddar cheese, strawberry pop tarts, and Doritos. Switching these worst four for the best four will instantly make your machine a center of healthy snacking. The worst junk food offenders are loaded with sugar, fat, and calories. Reading the labels and replacing those with high numbers in these categories with snacks that have considerably lower unhealthy numbers is a great way to join the healthy vending revolution.

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Is there such a thing as healthy vending? When most people thinking of snacks, they usually think of some type of food that is not healthy or nutritious, and snacks from vending machines are often considered even worse than other snacks.  When most people think of vending machine snacks, they think of potato chips, Cheetohs, crackers, candy bars, and soft drinks. However, snacking can be healthy if done responsibly. Responsible snacking usually means staying as far away from vending machines as possible, but that is beginning to change.

With childhood obesity rates rising, many schools have looked for ways to help children eat healthier.  Cafeteria selections have been changed to include healthier choices, health classes often emphasize the need to eat healthy at any age, and school officials have begun to look at food-dispensing equipment as another way to introduce healthier food choices. Schools often have to adhere to specific government guidelines on nutritional parameters and see healthy vending as one of the best ways to follow these guidelines and improve the health of our nation's children.

Besides schools, there are many other places that would be interested in healthier options for snacks.  Fitness centers, gyms, athletics centers on college campuses, beach boardwalk areas, parks, and recreation centers are all perfect places for new and improved snacking options.  Many businesses would also consider healthy snacks; with rising health care costs, it is conceivable that healthier eating could reduce the amount of doctor and hospital visits, decrease the number of sick days, and improve the health and vitality of all employees.

There are many food options for healthy vending. Water, flavored water, energy bars, soy milk, yogurt, string cheese, carrots and dip or hummus, baked chips, and nuts are only a few of the healthier options. Though these choices may be more expensive than the typical vending machine snack, business owners can assume that people will spend a little more money in order to eat something less fattening and more nutritious. People will pay more at a health food store for organic or healthier products, it is reasonable to assume that they will pay more to get better quality from a vending machines.

Most owners of food-dispensing equipment can start out slowly with this new trend of healthy eating.  They can mix in a few healthy products with the traditional items.  Or, if they have a location with a few machines, place one piece of equipment that dispenses healthy products alongside the other less healthy products.  Finding the right location for any healthy vending machines is also important. Using a vending locator service to find the best locations in your area can save time and hassle, and help your business make more money from your equipment. Healthy vending is a new trend in the industry; getting in now can help your business grow and prosper.

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Is there such a thing as an environmentally friendly vending machine? Most of them look like they are burning energy faster than the space shuttle. However, as the concern for our resources and the environment gradually becomes more widespread, it just might be time to start looking at energy efficient vending machines.

Building an Environmentally Friendly Vending Machine

To make equipment that uses less power and saves resources, there are certainly some items that can be considered.  First of all, the glass on the front of the machine can be double or triple-paned to keep in cool air and keep out warm air. Triple-pane glass is more costly, but it has a much better thermal performance than single-pane glass and will greatly reduce energy costs.  Vending equipment can also include better insulation, which will save energy over the life of the machine. LED lighting is another energy saving feature that improves overall efficiency without sacrificing aesthetics or quality. Efficient cooling systems may initially cost a little more and drive up the price of a machine, but they will save energy costs over the life of the equipment.

Vending machines can be designed to cool products during night hours (off-peak) instead of during the day (peak - or more expensive times).  Adding a device that can shut down the machine or reduce the level of cooling at specific times can also increase efficiency and reduce power costs.  Equipment can also be built out of 100% recycled products - someone's discarded trash can turn in to a beautiful new machine dispensing healthy snacks and drinks.

One of the worst environmental scourges of the 21^st century is the abundance of plastic. Plastic bottles are everywhere. It is estimated that 80 percent of plastic bottles are not recycled - nearly 40 million plastic bottles are dumped into landfills each year. These bottles take 700 years to begin composting - they will be around much longer than all of us! Not only are our landfills packed with plastic bottles, they are ubiquitous in our oceans and waterways. To reduce or eventually eliminate this problem, vending kiosks can be made to dispense water and drinks into a personal drink containers, thus eliminating the use of disposable plastic water bottles and helping to keep our environment cleaner and safer for animals and humans.

With all the features mentioned, a better vending machine can be built. It will save money for its location, help conserve our world's finite resources, and keep our planet cleaner and greener. There are hundreds of environmentally-friendly ideas just waiting for energetic entrepreneurs to turn them into a workable, energy-efficient food and drink dispensing piece of equipment. Environmentally friendly vending machines are beginning to show up, but there is plenty of room for advancement and improvement - the future of our world just might depend on it.

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