What are the benefits of buying new machines? I pondered this question as I purchased my latest machines. The warranty is pretty much mute. Who is going to pay shipping to return a machine? Its probably much cheaper to just fix the problem yourself.
I guess a special color is a benefit. What I have found though, is that having all your machines one color works to your advantage. If you have a problem or a damaged piece, you can just swap out with another if they are the same.
A coin t
I posted last week about feeling stalled out, and unmotivated to do much with the business right now. Well I realized what has been missing. Tina and I started this thing together as a way to bring in more income. She was going to locate and service all of the machines. Well....that didn't work out. She gets very shy talking to new people, I learned this as I had her go into a couple locations to pitch a machine. She lost interest in servicing the route. That sucked, because I was stuck w
I am seriously trying to expand my business, but I need to get it to a place where I can hire a trusted employeee. I currently have a group of routes that cover a 15 mile raidius around my home. I have one location outside this radius that grosses $1000 bucks a month(fulline) and has to be visited once per week. The 340 or so heads I have out gross enough for me to pull about $400 a month in net income with an additional $1000 for expansion. I figure I need to add another 200 heads and 2 ful
Well 2 weeks ago my father had to be taken back to the hospital because they discovered his colon was perforated. This caused leaking into his chest cavity, limiting his ability to breath. Friday he went back to the rehab center, but will need a followup surgery in about 2 months.
During this time I received a a request to remove one of my machines, and discovered another location had moved my machine back into a hidden area so nobody was using it, so I pulled that machine also. A little a
I went today looking to buy a van. I bought a van and landed a location, too. As I was leaving, I said "Would you be interested in a soda machine?" His response was "Of course!" easist location I have landed in my almost 3 years of vending!!
This location I picked up last week. I stoped in at a local motel. I asked the magic question "Are you happy with your vending service?" They practilly screemed NO! Needless to say, it was easy landing that location. Coke machines should be delivered in 2-3 weeks.
The most agervating part of 3rd party vending is the 3 week lead time on a machine. I plan to order a few to keep on hand for quick delivery, but I am not ready to do that yet.
I have done the math and I need 20 more soda locations that generate $100 per month profit inorder to quit my job. I figure that $100 per month profit is not a high goal and some locations will generate more profit and count as more that 1 location for my goal.
I will post a countdown as I aquire more and more locations. I will post 3 quick post for the frist 3 locations I have gotten thus far to get caught up
The Junkie needs another fix. He goes to all his usual places but can't find anything. Sweat pops out on his brow. He shakes uncontrollably. He must have it.
After days of looking he spots it. An old model 60 thats been sitting in a barn covered with dirt and rust. Heck, there's even some old stale gumballs still left in it. He bids on it. And again,again,and again. What would anybody want with such a dirty neglected machine he wonders.
He watches the countdown clock on the auction site slowl
Below is the answer I gave to this questions in a questionnaire for a local business magazine. I thought I would post it as a blog entry to hear comments.
[i][b]Legislation[/b] – Obama care contains calorie disclosure legislation that will effect the vending industry. The details of the exact requirements have not been ironed out, but depending on what is determined to be an acceptable solution, the implementation could be costly and time consuming. The sales tax schedule E526 (effective 4th
I have been working my vending business part time for over 2 yrs now. At first I did not have the capital to expand my full line vending. I now have over a year with Coke as a 3rd party vendor. From what I can tell on the forum, I have a very good deal with them. I have been slowly adding a loc here and another there, but working full time, serviing at church, and having a family with 2 kids under 3yrs has not left me with alot of time to build the business.
So, with the capital investment gr
Well my Father is having a lot of trouble moving, and has hip replacement surgery scheduled for next week. As a result I am now taking care of his house, and pets. I am hoping this does not interfere too much with everything I am working on. But family is a priority.
My biggest problem is that he lives in a town outside of mine, and is now staying in another town outside of mine, on the opposite side and further out. And with my schedules, I am the best option for getting him to his docto
Does size really matter? We've all participated in those conversations. But what about gumballs?
I've often wondered if people buy the gumball because it is big? What if they had say, 2 smaller gumballs at a lower price? Which one would they choose?
I decided to find out for myself. I bought 6 chicklet wheels from Ebay that only vend 2 at a time. I bought some 1/2" gumballs and tried them in the wheel. Works perfectly. Every time.
I can get the 8500ct gumballs for $26.90 and I'm g
I began changing my Oak flat panel machines to 300 and 450 globes right after I started in the business. The look of the globes were more appealing to me than the flat panels. The flat panels were cheaper on Ebay than the globe machines so I bought them originally.
In doing this I amassed a great deal of parts that I had no need for. I started trading for stuff I needed and began to sell some on Ebay and on Vendiscuss. I used that money to buy parts that I needed to make complete machines.
What continues to amaze me is that I learn something new about bulk vending all the time. I've been doing this for over a year now and my practices just keep getting refined and polished a little more each time this happens. At some point in time, I'll be able to call myself an experienced vendor.
I had an issue with an Oak coin mech yesterday and was talking about it to a buddy on here late last night (late for me any way) not him (he sleeps till noon). He suggested I check something on t
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[size="2"][size=2]Pic #1 what happened with this album cover and who is it?[/size][/size]
[size=2]Pic # 2 what is that a picture of?[/size][/size]
Pic # 3 what is wrong with this pic?
I have a wide taste in music...I was raised in the south so I guess I lean toward southern rock n roll...I have been to several concerts some I remember and some I dont, I have vague memories of a concert in Atlanta at Grant Field which is Ga Tech's home field, bands that I remember being there that day were Santana, Atlanta Rhythm Section...ok thats all I remember, was anybody else there?
I have seen Crosby, Stills and Nash 2 times, the time in the Omni back in the 70's was the best, the acou
I am becoming frustrated with buying from my suppliers. Aside from the fact that it is taking more and more time, it seems that both Sam’s and Vistar are losing their grip. I will start with Sam’s then add Vistar at another time.
Have you noticed that Sam’s club has stopped using the "in business for small business" slogan. I haven't, and there stores reflect the shift. As a result of slipping sales in end use customers to Costco, Sam’s has made a shift in their target customer and it is no l
In this section, I want to list the tools that I use during the refurbishing process. This will be a work in progress as I am always coming up with new ways to accomplish tasks.
While most repairs can be handled with common hand tools there are a few specialty items listed because they make the task so much easier.
[u]Screwdrivers[/u]-One of the most used tools is a screwdriver. You will need a good selection of Flat and Phillip tips. Long ones come in handy to remove the screws that hold
You've seen them.
Maybe not noticing as they briskly walk past you. There eyes fixated on an object on the other side of the room. A glaze in their eyes, not blinking,not even once. They walk across the room and stop with their back facing you. They reach into their pocket and grab loose change by the handful.
Quarters, looking for quarters.
Slowly they put a quarter in the machine, turning the handle in hopes of scoring not just 1 but 2 gumballs. They only receive 1. In goes another
With everything going on recently, my sleep schedule is completely out of whack, and I have been distracted. So I have decided that since it has snowed, and will continue to snow for the next day or so, combined with me having 3 days off of work, I have decided to sequester myself and work on my project.
There have been roadblocks, and things I have had to overcome, but since I have started from scratch a few months ago, knowing almost nothing, I think things are going quite well. I had hope
Picking a machine to refurbish can be challenging. You don't want one in too bad of shape but don't want one already repaired either.[attachment=897:NW Super 60 # 43,44,45.jpg]
Sometimes I'll buy a machine even though it is not complete because I know in the future I'll have a need for it. I'll also buy parts lots to use in the refurbishing process. Buying parts lots gives you the spare parts inventory that makes refurbishing more cost effective.
I try to make sure the machine has no hole
I started my bulk vending business by buying 10 new Northwestern machines and located them.
It didn't take me very long to figure out that the growth would be slow unless I could come up with an idea to get machines faster. I thought if I could get 2 machines for the price of 1 it would grow twice as fast.
I've got some mechanical ability so I looked on Ebay and started buying old used up machines and repairing them.
Since I started with Northwestern's, I looked at those and Oak Vista
