West Coast Vend LLC Posted July 5, 2009 Share Posted July 5, 2009 Well, now that you looked anyway... I am very sad to tell all of you some bad news, but this is a real life forum and good things as well as bad things happen every day. A few days ago I got a call from Block Buster video. They where calling to tell me that corporate no longer wants vending machines in any of their stores. As many of you know, I have all 60 BBV's in San Diego for over 2 years. They are about 80% of my total business. I started off with them doing about $2,000 per month and they now do $10,000 per month. Needless to say, I am in big trouble. I am lucking to have met so many good people in this business. They have been calling me with idea's every day and have helped me get through the shock if it. I already found places for some of the equipment and will continue to re-build my route. I love this business to much to just lay down and die. If you are new to vending, don't let this post change your mind about the vending business. These are the ups and downs of having your own business. Gary Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lurtsman Posted July 5, 2009 Share Posted July 5, 2009 I won't be visiting any of their stores. (Of course, I haven't for years anyway) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faith Vending Posted July 5, 2009 Share Posted July 5, 2009 I am very sad to hear this Gary. Hang in there and I know you will bounce back. The roadblocks in this business can be very unfair; stay strong and we are here for ya bud. Jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caserri Posted July 5, 2009 Share Posted July 5, 2009 I'm very sorry to hear this news Gary. Keep your chin up. With the right attitude (that you already have) and the proper support group (Your vending family at VENDiscuss) you'll bounce back from this in no time. I am a very firm believer in things happening for a reason. Once you close the door on BBV, you'll soon see another door that you never even knew was there. What is behind that door just may be your true destiny. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
antoniocinisi Posted July 5, 2009 Share Posted July 5, 2009 omg that call must have been like a punch in the stomach.I hope you bounce back quickly. so many good locations will be really hard to replace.where will you keep all the machines? will you give them thier last commission before you pull?how long do you have? do you think they will get thier own machines? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nepavend Posted July 5, 2009 Share Posted July 5, 2009 Gary, I am very sorry to hear of your bad news. I cannot imagine what you are going through, I guess only Coinstar would have an idea when they lost all the Walmarts nationwide. Losing a chunk of business is a constant fear among vendors of all sizes. You now have an opportunity to help many more members by how you handle misfortune as well as how you handle success. You have to wonder what BBV is thinking by kicking a ton of free money out the door with the economy the way it is and the first thing being cut out of budgets is entertainment expenses. Free money for them seems like a silly thing to kick out the door. Now, off my soapbox... Depending how you look at this, you may have an opportunity now to replace that equipment so it makes more than $10,000 per month, and in addition, not all of the equipment will be placed in the same store chain so you will not be at risk for losing all of that business with one stroke of a pen. This is certainly the path I hope that you take, Gary, to get your business back to the level it was at before this situation. I also hope that this just makes you hungry again to reach new levels in your business. Best of luck to you Gary, I will be pulling for you! Joe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sterling Posted July 6, 2009 Share Posted July 6, 2009 I just want to comment on the question of stiffing a location out of their last commission. Although it is very tempting to consider I'd advise against it. The person who collects that money from you may get a new job for a chain that is looking for a reputable vendor. Do you want them to remember you paying the final commission and calling you for the account or to swear you off! I got called to pull a machine from a decent location. He was closing and told me I had less than 2 hours to get the machine. I was a little miffed about loosing the location and the fact that I had to drop everything to go get the machine. He wasn't in the front when I got there and wanted to pick up the machine and run. I didn't, I waited for him to come out and paid him his $12 commission. He told me when he opens another restaurant he will surely call me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G-man422 Posted July 6, 2009 Share Posted July 6, 2009 Gary, That is a real bummer. You have a positive attitude about it though and that will help you to find new better locations. Getting into BBV in the first place shows you have the majic touch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tedk Posted July 6, 2009 Share Posted July 6, 2009 Gary: I'm very disappointed to hear this news. What an unfortunate turn of events for you. As big a shock as this must have been, I'm glad to see your positive side pushing it's way to the forefront. Remember it is this attitude that got you the blockbuster deal in the first place, and your positive side is what will rebuild your route even stronger. You have been an inspiration to many of us here. We stand with you if only in spirit and know you will be bigger and better in short order. Ted Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reel Posted July 6, 2009 Share Posted July 6, 2009 Heres to wishing you all the best in rebuilding your route Gary, to loose 60 in one swoop sure is extremely difficult to cope with. One of our major supermarket chains here threw all bulk vending machines out of their break room earlier this year, however, we only lost 8 locations thank goodness, however, we have over 40 machines in their bigger oppositions break rooms. In the last 2 months we have had 2 candy machines stolen, 1 vandalised and 2 locked up in vacated premises which i just cannot seem to get too...........sure is frustrating and at times makes me wonder if im an idiot for getting into this business lol. Good luck Gary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T BIRD Posted July 6, 2009 Share Posted July 6, 2009 Hi Gary......I am just reading about this now. I am so very sorry to hear about this crap with BlockBuster. You have helped me enormously with your energy, enthusisam, and knowledge, here on Vendiscuss. I am confident you will be fine. As Steve said, I truly believe things happen for a reason. We just need to trust that another door will indeed open for us. If you need to talk or something, I will PM you my cell phone number buddy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bacho Posted July 6, 2009 Share Posted July 6, 2009 Sorry to hear about your misfortune with Blockbuster, Gary. I can't imagine loosing a $10,000 a month client. On the other hand I have watched you grow here on Vendiscuss. You are one of the few people that have made a biz-op mistake work. There's a special knack at doing that and you have it. Keep your chin up and I'm sure you will be able to replace that account in no time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BudLeiser Posted July 6, 2009 Share Posted July 6, 2009 Just the other day I thought they removed a spiral from my local BVV. But no they just moved it out of the sun and closer to the checkout counter. Now when I go back by I will have to check to see if it's still there. Large corporations suck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
new2this Posted July 6, 2009 Share Posted July 6, 2009 WOW Corporate sucks. You will be fine because you didn't let this discourage you from vending . Good Luck to you. TCoop Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
candygirl Posted July 7, 2009 Share Posted July 7, 2009 Gary I just found this post and the bad news. Very, very, sorry to hear this. But. You are a gifted sales and businessman and I agree with everyone else here--another door will open for you because you will make it happen. Thanks for sharing this with us--you have a lot of friends on this forum who are pulling for you. Good luck! Barb Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
West Coast Vend LLC Posted July 7, 2009 Author Share Posted July 7, 2009 Thank you everyone for your words of encouragement. I was reluctant to post this bad news because I don't want people to feel sorry for me. It really stinks when something like this happens. If it was just an okay group of accounts, that where struggling due to the economy, I wouldn't feel as bad. These stores where getting better and better each month. It was amazing! I started making a list of accounts I will start talking to in the next couple of months. I stopped at the Edwards Cinema, imax today to get the name & number of the vending company that services this movie theater so poorly. I am on the lookout for companies that give poor service. That is the best place to start. There are a few Mexican food chains and a few other accounts I will check out next. Thanks again my friends. Gary Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jax Snacks Posted July 7, 2009 Share Posted July 7, 2009 Sorry for the loss there Gary. That is a tough pill to swallow. I know sometimes I hate it when my phone rings since it may be one of those dreaded calls. I find myself constantly on the offensive looking for new accounts since we all are going to get those types of calls at some point. Personally, I would try and stall to keep the machines in place for a few weeks and would not pay the commission since that is a large amount of income and equipment to replace in a short time. Some may disagee, but I have little compassion for owners who kick me out - especially when they buy their own equipment. Good luck with the relocating. Jax Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sbishop Posted July 7, 2009 Share Posted July 7, 2009 I have all 60 BBV's in San Diego for over 2 years. They are about 80% of my total business. I used to own a computer repair business. Our business model consisted of comercial contracts with local businesses. 85% of our revenue came from these contracts. I decided that I did not want any one company' s contract to be such a large percentage of the total revenue that the loss of that contract would adversely affect our business. When we aquired a large contract from a Auto Dealer, it fell into this category. So, I went out and got more contracts from other companies to offset this big one. Once we had enough contracts to balance out the equation, the auto dealer bought out a comptetior and I had to go out and find more customers. This happened 3 times. If you follow this plan, losing a chain or even a your biggest spot will not hurt you that bad. If also forces you to keep expanding and analizing your route. Also, This is a great learning opportunity for the members of the forum. We all can see how you handle this set back and hopefully be better prepared if this happens to us. Best of Luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BDIG36 Posted July 8, 2009 Share Posted July 8, 2009 what is a b.b.v. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
antoniocinisi Posted July 8, 2009 Share Posted July 8, 2009 BLOCK BUSTER VIDEO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ginger vend Posted July 10, 2009 Share Posted July 10, 2009 Gary, You will have continued success with your persistant attitude. Ginger Vend Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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