Not made in US vending machines

[peacock]

Guys I am new to vending and have noticed a variety of machines that are made in places other than US. Does anyone have experience with ordering,  shipping or technical issues with these machines? Thanks. 

[orsd]

If you are in the US at a minimum the foreign machines are going to be very hard to find parts for. Technical support is also going to be hard to get (different time zone and possible language barriers), and local vending techs may or may not be able to work on them. Also, most likely this forum won’t be of much help either.

All this is in addition to the fact that many Chinese machines are poorly built, with a mishmash of parts and terrible manuals.

[peacock]

Thanks for the reply.  I figured it was worth asking just in case I was wrong about it.  I kinda thought that would be the answers.

[RZup4]

Peacock,

I have a decent amount of experience sourcing machines from China over the last few years. TCN machines to be exact. In general the machines worked well and we rarely had problems with the components. However, when we did, finding the solutions was on our shoulders. 

There are also huge hurdles when defining your product specifications. If you decide to go down that route, DO NOT LEAVE ANY DECISION UP TO THEM. Exact measurements wiring etc needs to be defined. Doing this with someone who speaks a different language is a struggle.

I'm sure you are thinking about it due to the price point. It is great, we did the same. However when you look at the total cost of ownership, after machines tariffs, shipping, support, repairs, we are at a minimum breaking even vs the machines we can purchase stateside. And the quality is better.

Best of luck in your search!

[peacock]

On 12/28/2021 at 7:37 AM, RZup4 said:

Peacock,

I have a decent amount of experience sourcing machines from China over the last few years. TCN machines to be exact. In general the machines worked well and we rarely had problems with the components. However, when we did, finding the solutions was on our shoulders. 

There are also huge hurdles when defining your product specifications. If you decide to go down that route, DO NOT LEAVE ANY DECISION UP TO THEM. Exact measurements wiring etc needs to be defined. Doing this with someone who speaks a different language is a struggle.

I'm sure you are thinking about it due to the price point. It is great, we did the same. However when you look at the total cost of ownership, after machines tariffs, shipping, support, repairs, we are at a minimum breaking even vs the machines we can purchase stateside. And the quality is better.

Best of luck in your search!

Thanks for the insight!

[jamey]

I agree that buying American-made machines gives you easy access to after-sales service, but their prices are a far cry from those made in China. I don't think it's a wise move for a newbie to try the business at a premium price.

[AZVendor]

It is not wise for a newbie in the US to buy anything other than US machines, and price is not the issue.  If that's not what you're saying then you don't know the business.