Deciding where to store my stock..??

[Finaritwo1]

Cold weather is approaching quickly and I was beginning to wonder if storing my stock in Sterilite 50 gallon stackable totes, latched , in my unheated garage will alter the freshness of the potato chips. I’m just starting out and have 7 snack machines which I’m servicing out of my SUV. I stage three 50 gallon totes with enough variety to cover servicing for a day. The temp never drops below freezing in my garage , which is where I’ve been storing my bottles & canned soda as well. It’s difficult keeping 20-25 cs of stock in my dining room (which we never use) but the kids think it’s open season at the snack shack in there whenever I’m not looking..Plus who wants all that laying around anyways. 

Im curious how some of you other venders with small routes, especially starters like me working out of their vehicles, where do you store your stock, chips & soda? 

I’m getting comfortable now with my small route (3 months in) and have started to think about adding more stops. Finding new locations as I’m learning is not easy but I’d like to increase my route by adding at least 8-10 more stops through 2018. I got into this business after early retirement to keep busy 1-2 days a week. Now I see the potential , I’m driven to build up the stops and wouldn’t mind working 2-3 days a week or more but getting there is the challenge. The knowledge here is immeasurable, learning how to approach potential new clients, wether or not to offer commissions, is still a learning process for me. 

[Southeast Treats]

Chips should not be affected by cold weather.  Chocolate that gets too cold and then rewarms may change color and result in complaints/ refund issues for you, if your garage stays above about 40 F you should be OK.

 

[AngryChris]

Where do you live? If you live in a place like texas, you shouldn't worry.

[Finaritwo1]

Massachusetts.....

[AngryChris]

That shouldn't be too much different from Ohio then.. meaning you get cold winters that can get below 0.  If that's the case, here is the rule I use:  If it's going to get under 20 degrees, then diet soda needs to go inside.  if it gets below 10 degrees, then everything needs to go inside.  You can also do something simple like put a space heater in your vehicle as long as the soda is sitting on something that won't be affected by the wind chill, but that's only if it will be something like 14 degrees.  Once you get into single digits, your best bet is to bring it somewhere where it will stay well above 30 degrees or so.  Even leaving soda on a cold surface that will be chilled by the wind chill can freeze the soda.  It's a major pain but it's the rule I use.

Almost everything else will be totally fine in the whether but there are two things you should bring inside when it gets really cold (below 10 degrees or so); candy and snacks that are often prone to having the seals come open like famous amos, cheez-its, and a few other varieties that often have open bags in the boxes.  What happens is that it can get so cold that the wax turns solid.  When they thaw back out, the wax separates from the bag causing the bag to be open at one end and possibly making stuff stale if it's been open long enough.  Then customers think you put it in there that way when it opened after you stocked it and it warmed up.  Frito-Lay products are usually fine.  As for candy, chocolate can turn white if it warms up too fast but that really only happens if it's been in freezing conditions for a while.  Even so, I worry more about customers getting frozen solid candy bars and not being able to eat them right away than anything else... it's not a major issue but candy is expensive anyway so why risk it when it's just a few boxes to bring in?

Also, if you want to keep things in your garage, if your garage is insulated well enough for a space heater to be effective, you could try that, but do so at your own risk (risk of fire) and the cost of the electricity.  If a space heater won't work due to air leaks, then your only option (aside from sealing air leaks or building an enclosure in your garage just for things to stay warm enough) is to bring them inside.  I have put a space heater in my box truck many times but there's always the risk of fire and even the risk that the space heater stops working for whatever reason (broken, disconnected, blown breaker, etc..).  Keeping things inside is what I do.  It sucks, but it only happens when it's going to be below 10 degrees which is maybe less than 20 days over the course of the entire winter.  A space heater would keep everything cold enough when it's 15 degrees as long as the space heater is facing the product, the product is stacked so nothing in the back is blocked from warm air, and the floor is not as cold as the wind chill (ie. the floor of a box truck may be as cold as the air outside whereas the garage floor may be slightly warmer due to no wind chill factor).

[nvb]

I decided on a 10'x6' enclosed cargo trailer, all white to stay cool in summer. I just take it shopping with me every few weeks and run my route with it. The product never comes out and can be organized nicely with a bit of shelving.

Luckily I'm in the Pac Northwest, it rarely goes too far below freezing and if it does I got a little space heater with a freeze protection setting. It kicks in at low level around 35F.