Building Up A Route

[Agapevending]

I have been doing this for a long time I know. But I'm just baffled right now.

I used to run the same number of machines in Killeen TX. and would average 200 a month. My family and I had to move. Close to Waco

So I moved the bus. Any way. With same number of Machines (20) I average around $ 76.00 if I am lucky. I run straight Cahrity and Don't want to go Commisson (Not enough money in the machines for that) My Carity I use is Child search. Eddie is my Locator.

I would like to see this route do 200 + a month. but I'm not sure how. almost 100% of my loacations are all adult . So toys would pretty much be a loser. I have one day care. but that's it. Any one have any great ideas. Besides have Eddie move them all again.

Hope Some one has a good idea.

[dpvnc]

If it were me and my machines were doubles. I would move a bit towards locations with child traffic and change to gumballs and bouncy balls. If you want to stay adult ask people at locations what they want in the machines. One location of mine went from 50 cents a month vending cashews to 10.00 with Hot tamales just changing 1 head made a huge difference.

[agrantha]

I have realized that restaurants on average do better than most other type of businesses.

Dpvnc has a good point. I like to do gumballs and chiclets for the great profit margins.

If you have 20 locations, you need to be doing at least $500 to $600 per month.

Get you some new like condition Northwesterns and vend gumballs and Chiclets in restaurants.

[sherlock]

If you have 20 locations, you need to be doing at least $500 to $600 per month.

What are you basing your minimum $500-$600 per 20 locations figure on?

[MrGranger]

What are you basing your minimum $500-$600 per 20 locations figure on?

For 20 locations that's an average of $25 per location, and if you've got two or more heads at each then it's $13 or less per head average. Sounds like a good goal.

[sherlock]

For 20 locations that's an average of $25 per location, and if you've got two or more heads at each then it's $13 or less per head average. Sounds like a good goal.

You misread the original post and my own.

The original poster has 20 machines...not 20 locations.

So he/she can't have 20 locations AND put multiple heads in any of them.

And while I agree that $25 per location is not a bad goal, my post contained a quote that didn't list $500-$600 as a "goal".

It stated 20 locations "need to be doing at least $500-$600".

That's "at least" as in a MINIMUM.

Considering Agapevending only has 20 machines, that equals a single at each location...and each single earning $25 average.

That's not realistic.

A lot of new vendors come on here.

I like keeping things realistic.

Some single head gumball or chiclet locations do average $25 per month.

But those locations are the exception and not the rule.

So my post was just a request for more info.

If there is a basis for that $500-$600 for 20 heads (not locations), I'd sure like to know about it.

Agapevending (the original poster)has been doing this a long time.

And with his experience, his average pull was $200 for 20 heads before he moved.

From my experience and from industry research I'm familiar with, the $10-per-head average he was pulling is much more realistic than $500-$600.

[sherlock]

I have been doing this for a long time I know. But I'm just baffled right now.

I used to run the same number of machines in Killeen TX. and would average 200 a month. My family and I had to move. Close to Waco

So I moved the bus. Any way. With same number of Machines (20) I average around $ 76.00 if I am lucky. I run straight Cahrity and Don't want to go Commisson (Not enough money in the machines for that) My Carity I use is Child search. Eddie is my Locator.

I would like to see this route do 200 + a month. but I'm not sure how. almost 100% of my loacations are all adult . So toys would pretty much be a loser. I have one day care. but that's it. Any one have any great ideas. Besides have Eddie move them all again.

Hope Some one has a good idea.

Here's what I would do.

Your locations are all adult locations.

Stick to gum & candy, but rotate, rotate, rotate.

Depending on how many locations you have, rotating selection will do the following for you:

1. It will cut down on spoilage since no one selection sits at a location long enough to get boring to your customers.

2. Rotating will allow you to find out what sells better at any given location.

If you find you have a "hot" seller somewhere, don't rotate it as often.

3. It will minimize the number of different candies you have to stock.

If someone at a location doesn't like what you have, they can wait until you service again and get something different in the machine.

(I'm not a big fan of catering to a locations requests since that usually doesn't lead to higher earnings)

Also, stay away from chiclets.

Chiclet sales stink.

Stick with gumballs, even adults like gumballs better than chiclets.

You probably have more experience than me, so that may be not be news to you.

I limit candy on my route because I'm not a big fan of the stuff.

The majority of my route is not candy.

But, I have some adult-only locations and, therefore, I'm forced to provide some locations with candy.

I don't know what machines you use.

I use Oaks and A&A machines, mostly.

While servicing, the globes/selections I pull from one location just get cleaned/filled and move into the next location.

For example, say I pull skittles from location "A" and put in RP.

The skittles globe from location "A" gets freshened up and then gets put into location "B".

I might pull plain M&M from location "B" and that gets moved to location "C".

And so on -- it's an unending cycle that minimizes spoilage AND customer boredom.

Just remember to have a charity sticker at each location as your rotate globes.

I have quite a bit more than 20 heads I do this with.

But I'm sure it will work just as well with 20 heads or less, too.

In fact, it may work better with fewer locations/heads.

If you are already doing something like what I describe, then....I hate to tell you this, but you need to prune your locations for new ones.