davidsurvz Posted February 8, 2013 Share Posted February 8, 2013 Hello Guys, Just wanted to check in and say HI. I don't know if I checked in when we had our last "delivery" Caleb is number 6 he'll be one in April (we're done having kids now, 4 boys and 2 girls 4 of them born at home. (I married superwoman........... My wife really is amazing, she puts up me, does tons around the house, homeschools the kids, etc. She really is great!) We finally moved to our place in the country in November and finally started our homestead. (We are about 1/2 hour outside of Charlotte). We also are setting up our old place as our first rental property. We got a steal of a deal on the place we're in now. We love it! Almost 7 acres with 6 outbuildings and plenty of room for our animals. So far we have 14 chickens (we started with almost 30, lost 9 to a dog attack, 2 to other predators and 3 to sickness), we also have 2 cats , a chocolate lab "Buddy" (he was the family Christmas present) and we just put in order for 2 hives worth of bees. (We'll be setting up the hives in early spring, can't wait to have our own fesh honey.) Next on the list is a couple of goats.I have been putting up fencing for the last 3 weekends to get ready for them too. We don't know that much about homesteading (mostly the basics but we are learning all the time.) It's very challenging and tiring sometimes but we are having a lot of fun. I am still working my regular job in the electronic security industry it is going alright. I may start my own company within the next year or so. My ultimate goal would be to own 15 or 20 rental properties and just mannage them and do all the work on the houses as my business, we'll see...... I am still doing some vending on the side but I am planning on turning over what is left of the route to my kids as they get a little older. I am trying my hand at stocks and eventually real estate.(seems to me like thats where the money is.............. so far so good. I still have a lot to learn though.) I would just like to say to some of you newbies and younger people starting out. DON'T GIVE UP!! Keep pursuing your dreams and business ideas , you can do it!!! This forum was extremely helpful to me getting started with my vending business. I learned a ton and was very encouraged and inspired by many successful vendors and friends here. It took us 10 years to get our homestead and get our first rental property but we made it. Set your goals , learn from your mistakes and keep trying. Listen to good advice from people with experience and definitely ignoe bad advice from people who have no experience with what you are trying to do. God Bless! I hope everyone is doing well around here. I'll drop in again to say HI. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mission vending Posted February 9, 2013 Share Posted February 9, 2013 Thanks for the update David, glad to hear that all is well with you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidsurvz Posted September 6, 2013 Author Share Posted September 6, 2013 Hey Guys, I'm back.............. To say hello. Well it turns out Caleb # 6 won't be our last one...... # 7 is about 7 1/2 months away. Man kids are fun. (Making them is too.) Anyway, we are up to 50 plus chickens laying eggs. (We sell them as one of our side businesses.) We have 3 goats, one bee hive (we had 2 hives but had to combine them because one of the queens died, the plan is to sell honey next spring. Lots of fruit growing on our land too. We are very busy but we are having a lot of fun too. Still at my old job for now but lining up to start sub contracting on the side. I still have a small vending route but if we keep having these kids maybe I will build up a sizable route just to pay for all the food and clothes. Well, gotta' run....... I'll keep in touch. P.S. I think of rental properties as big vending machines ............... Dividend stocks too...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caserri Posted September 8, 2013 Share Posted September 8, 2013 Wow David! Congrats on #7! It seems that you are a very busy guy. Thanks so much for checking in and good luck with everything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidsurvz Posted March 9, 2018 Author Share Posted March 9, 2018 Hello all, I just dropped in to say hello. I had a heart attack last year (widow-maker the doctor called it) and several other personal challenges over the last 6 months but all is very well now!! I still have some bulk vending machines out there that I am giving to my now teenage boys along with a brokerage account for them to start investing in. I sure do remember the good ole days on this forum. I joined in 07 and it was the best thing I did for my dream of a vending business, at one point we had over 50 machines out on location that was back during the crash and downturn of 08 / 09. We started with 1 Amerivend globe back then and Caserri helped me buy my second machine from Sam's Club with the profits from that first machine. I can say that if I had it to do all over again I would go with rack machines full of toys and maybe 1 head of gumballs - AT KID FRIENDLY LOCATIONS!! When I switched to toys from candy at my "kid friendly" locations (which I really learned about from this forum) My sales skyrocketed!! Seriously I was amazed. At 1 location I went from about $8.00 / month to over $35.00 each month. I had another location in a mall food court that went from $30.00 / month to over $80.00+ / month until management changed and I lost the location. KID FRIENDLY locations with toys are a BIG HIT!!! I used to love pulling $25 to $60 per week from some of my better locations. I did have some duds too though, it wasn't all glamour. Broken machines, stolen machines, spilled candy in the family van, "I got all they way here and realized I forgot my vending keys", etc. etc, .. I did reach my goal of 50 plus machines in a relatively short period of time though. All from reinvesting the profits from that first couple of machines and selling machines that I got super deals on (some were even free) over time. My kids are still making good money to this day from that first Amerivend gumball machine we located back in 07. I am handing the last of my route to my boys at the end of this month. It's great to see the cash flow that is still coming in after 10+ years from some of those original locations. To everyone on the forum - pursuit your goals and dreams. Love your families and enjoy your life - Every day is a gift! Even when we don't realize it. Learn to save and invest at least 10 to 20 % of your income and you will be glad you did someday. Vending is a lot of fun and I am so glad I did it! hope you all have great success. Don't give up or listen to the naysayers! If you have the vision and passion and desire to achieve something. GO FOR IT!! It's OK to fail because failure teaches us for greater success down the road. It's OK to succeed because success teaches us lessons that are like gold for our families and our future. Happy Vending! God Bless you all. - I'll stop back in sometime. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Mage Posted March 11, 2018 Share Posted March 11, 2018 Hey Dave, glad you're doing better. Make sure you are taking CoQ10, preferably as Ubiquinol. There is real research behind this supplement benefitting heart health, and reducing the risk of future problems. CoQ10 Getting your kids to learn to invest is great. Have them check out Motley Fool. They unfortunately have gone overboard on their advertising, but what they teach is top notch, low risk, and based on the top investors in the world. Their 13 steps are the place to begin. https://www.fool.com/how-to-invest/index.aspx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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