Starting at ground 0!

[Javier]

Hi,

I've been researching about business ideas that don't require too much capital to begin with and can be somewhat automated/part-time as I start on it and found Vending to be surprisingly the best fit and potentially very profitable as well. I live in Concord, CA and I now this area should have great potential and my intention is to grow it up as a business and not keep it as a side income level. But now I have this question in my head on where to start as I see 3 different alternatives and founding this forum fills me with hope that I can have a community to share the whole experience and  unbiased support. The 3 options I see are:

- Brand new machines: I've found they are at around $4-6k each, but then need to find locations and inventory management software. I found some people offer locating services for a fee between $500 to $1000 per location, and also found on fiverr.com you can hire people to do the cold calling for way less, they would provide a contact list and set up some appointments but then anything after the initial call is on you. Here the uncertainty of everything at starting is what holds me off.

- Brand new machines with business support: With them each machine is around $10-$11k. In this case I'm in talks with the following companies Healthy You, Healthier 4U, Naturals 2Go, Healthy Smart Mart (this one is "only" $6k per location because is not vending machines per se). I see there's plenty of added value so buying overpriced from them for people who don't have any experience like me doesn't sound actually like a bad idea, however, never in my 15+ years of professional life have I ever seen such payment terms. They all have a minimum of machines to buy, 3 or 5, and they all require you to pay down the whole machine price before they start finding the locations, they offer a website so that will also take time, and the machines have a lead time of 4 to 8 weeks. More than the cost is the payment terms what holds me back from this option.

- Used machines: Same uncertainty as the first one with the only advantage that the required capital is much lower, probably $1-$3k per machine hence the financial struggle while learning the business is reduced. 

I've seen plenty of people in this industry comment on here so I will greatly appreciate your feedback. And since it has been of great help to me reading thru many threads I plan on posting how my endeavor develops so it would serve as reference for future newbies as well.

My questions:

What option do you recommend?

Any experience with the machine suppliers that I mentioned?

Any experience with locating services?

Is it worth getting an inventory app while I have less than 5 machines?

 

Thanks!

Javier

[Chard]

Why not just purchase an existing route?  

[Steve B]

In the same boat as you, can't offer much expert advice but I can at least tell you how I'm starting.

Used machines - I'm pretty technically and mechanically savvy so I'm not too worried about fixing any issues an older machine might have

So far I've been sourcing my machines from Craig's list / Facebook marketplace though looking at getting some machines in from Vending World

Haven't used any locator services yet. Trying to keep the entire route in a small geographic area (basically one industrial zone) there's another sub-forum about them though. My first few machines have been located at my day job, friend's companies, and hopefully soon a shop I'm a regular at.

Getting into Nayax's ecosystem, card readers and vending management software. it's not super cheap with the cost per machine but I like having lots of data and think card readers aren't optional when it comes to vending nowadays. Waiting on my readers to be activated before really getting into it so I can't say anything good or bad yet.

[AZVendor]

To the OP, number 3, period.

[Southeast Treats]

Stay far away from your "option 2".  You will see those referred to on here as "bizops" or usually just "scams".  Cheapest imported machines they can find, marked up to obscene prices, and the "locators" will deliver poor locations if any at all. 

Buying used machines with the forum as a resource is the least expensive way to source equipment for a startup.  If you can find a good refurbisher near you that may be a good option as well.  New machines are great if you have a lot of capital to start, but your ROI will be much longer, and vending machine depreciate faster than new cars driving off the lot...

Locators tend to not work out very well, the best way to get new locations is to get out and sell.  There are old threads here that go into the subject pretty deeply.  As Chard mentioned, sometimes the fastest and easiest way to get into the business is to buy an existing small route.  That gives you at least one contact in the business (the seller) and a few machines to learn with.  Again, use the forum to help you evaluate before you buy.  It's easy to overpay when buying a route. 

[NYvendingnewbie]

On 2/7/2022 at 12:31 AM, Southeast Treats said:

Stay far away from your "option 2".  You will see those referred to on here as "bizops" or usually just "scams".  Cheapest imported machines they can find, marked up to obscene prices, and the "locators" will deliver poor locations if any at all. 

Buying used machines with the forum as a resource is the least expensive way to source equipment for a startup.  If you can find a good refurbisher near you that may be a good option as well.  New machines are great if you have a lot of capital to start, but your ROI will be much longer, and vending machine depreciate faster than new cars driving off the lot...

Locators tend to not work out very well, the best way to get new locations is to get out and sell.  There are old threads here that go into the subject pretty deeply.  As Chard mentioned, sometimes the fastest and easiest way to get into the business is to buy an existing small route.  That gives you at least one contact in the business (the seller) and a few machines to learn with.  Again, use the forum to help you evaluate before you buy.  It's easy to overpay when buying a route. 

Hello I’m new here just starting out.  Just have question about buying an existing route. How does one go about doing that? 

[AZVendor]

Bulk vending or real vending machines? Buy from an existing operator selling out if you want them with locations.  Don't pay a locator.

[Southeast Treats]

On 2/23/2022 at 4:53 PM, NYvendingnewbie said:

Hello I’m new here just starting out.  Just have question about buying an existing route. How does one go about doing that? 

Pretty much the same way you would buy any business.  Start looking at the business for sale listings for your area.  When you see something in your price range, you still need to proceed slowly, do your due diligence in checking the information presented by the seller.