milestone

[gundog]

This week marks the end of my first full year in vending business.

I started doing some research in March of '09 but did not commit till July of '09.

I have learned a lot but have a lot more to learn I am sure.  

I started out by buying 5 stops from a vendor who no longer wanted to do them.  I have purchased several more from other vendors.  I tried locating myself with substandard results- as I only placed 2 machines.   So I have given up on that for the time being.  I have tried the "professional locator" route with terrible results.  So, for now, I am just buying stops from other vendors.

As of this point, I am very part time but I am still building so here is a snapshot of my route:

16 locations of which 12 are soda only.

I run route one day every other week. I can't do all 16 in one day so the ones that are on my direct path to/from my full time job get serviced on the way to work.

4th quarter projection of $25K in gross sales for the year to come.

It took about 7 months or so of trying this and that to get feeling like I was up and going.  I didn't turn a net profit the first 3 quarters but I did in the 4th quarter.  Hopefully this should continue as the startup costs are out of the way.

I onlyown 2 of the 5 original stops and am already grown out of 4 or so more stops that I am trying to sell.

I exceeded my goal of having $500 extra per month after all expenses by the end of the first year.

So what is next for year 2?  At this point I intend to still stay part time working the majority of the stops in one day every other week, but I intend to concentrate on acquiring a higher percentage of  better($3-$6K) volume stops in order to net $1200+/ month.  I also intend to take a serious look at what would be needed to do this full time.  My current full time job is keeping me away from my son at nite and I don't think that is going to work so well when he comes of school age.

[mission vending]

Keep up the good work. Sounds like you are doing fine with the business.

Growing slowly without a lot of debt is the way to go.

[gundog]

That is good point mission and one that I will add-  Did this without adding so much as a dime of debt!!!

[nrpick44]

What would you say was the biggest surprise or hardest thing to learn during your 1st yr? Im only a month into the vending world and I learn things everyday. Just curious if any 1 or 2 things stand out above the rest. Congrats on a great 1st yr!

[NinnJinn]

Congrats on your success!  I understand where you are coming from as far as children go.

[gundog]

Thanks, I do have a good job that I enjoy but unfortunatly the hours are not conventional.  Not only do I end up working nights, but my job does not respect weekends or holidays at all.  I do really enjoy it and I could do this job till I retire but I am a single father of a 4 year old.

It has been getting to me lately when I have to leave him.  He just wants to be with me and I want to be with him.  It is hard to be away thru the evening especially when he tells me he just wants me home. :'(

Not only that but as he gets to school age he is going to need help with homework and more structure/supervision that only a parent can provide. 

This is one of the main reasons I started this business.  I am 40 now and if I have to change career paths, I really don't want to work for someone else again.  (Not to mention that I have wanted to have a successful business since I was probably 5 or 6 years old.  My first was raising rabbits while in elementary school) 

I don't see myself going to vending full time in the next year but who knows what is in store for each of us.  I  do want to have a solid foundation built in case I need to make the change over to full time vending if I have or choose to.

[gundog]

nrpick44 - When I got into the business I knew I would probably have to "put in my time" and I knew the $100+ a week stops were not going to be everywhere for the picking.  So I think I was pretty level headed with my expectations.

That being said, I had no clue of how difficult and frustrating it would be for me to place machines.  Placing even a few dollar a week machines proved nearly impossible.  It was so frustrating to me, I quit doing it.   

[NinnJinn]

I hear you loud and clear!  I ended up changing jobs so I could spend more time with my family.  Yeah, I took one heck of a pay cut!  but at times it comes down to a choice between job or family.

Sure, we had to make changes.  I no longer have a nice Rinker boat sitting in the garage collecting dust.  Or my Kawasaki Ninja that I don't have time for.

Even though I gave up some of my toys,  it was actually kind of silly to have them.  Last year we took the boat out a handful of times.  last year I road my bike on two different occasions.

By getting rid of them, I am saving a little over $450/month.  Which makes up for about 65% of the pay cut I took.

But my wife and two girls are happier and so am I.

[sherlock]

Congrats on your first year gundog.

Keep it up.

I wish you all the best.

I like cheering for people who chase a dream...especially when that dream involves time with family.

As a father of two -- time with my wife and kids was the primary cause for my starting a vending biz.

Don't worry about the materialistic things.

Your child will grow up faster than you can imagine and the time you spend with him is more valuable than the biggest paycheck in the world.

Louis Barajas (a financial and business expert) put things very well in perspective in one of his books when he wrote something along these lines (not a direct quote -- but this was the general message):

I knew my family should come before my career after I had been a financial advisor for several years. It occurred to me one day that none of my clients ever asked to have his/her investment portfolio brought to their bedside when preparing to die. Every one of them asked to be surrounded by family, not financials.

Good luck, bro.