How do you know when to restock vending machines?

I recently installed a newer type of vending machine in a school that has 100 hundred students. This combo vending machine was originally in a labor recruitment facility.

The labor recruitment facility originally requested a combo vending machine about 3 months ago. I do not have a used combo machine off hand at that time. So I leased a newer combo vending machine for 36 months!

Sometimes it is risky when you lease a vending machine for 36 months on expensive payments and it is not producing sales for you. The result is just about $60 to $70 per month for the labor recruitment facility location and the lease was around $380+ per month. The net profit for the gross sales of $60 per month is only around $30 assuming you are selling 100% profit.

So you will still be loosing around $380 less 30 = $350 which is a huge amount of money for me since my business is solely self-employed vending machine business.

Luckily I found a school. So I hope the sales will be promising. So far im contemplating that the sales will be at least $300 per month but of course I have to find out in the future.

If Let’s say the sales is really $300 per month on the new location then I will still be loosing around:

$300 profit is $150, so $380 less 150 = Negative 230.

This will lessen the wrong decision that I have made.

Why do you need to accept new vending locations all the time?

You never know if all your locations are happy with your service. Some locations goes nuts and for various factors and reasons might decide for another vendor. In this business especially here in Vancouver, BC where a lot of people are employed never put their shoes if they are the one who is running the business.

I always have empathy on self-employed businesses here in Vancouver, BC.

Businesses here suddenly declared closure for some strange reasons.

It is just customarily that a vending machine businessman should always accept new locations if there are an opportunity.

There is a statistics on loosing and gaining vending machine locations everywhere. This does not happen to me only but to other vending machine business folks as well.

Here is you tube link on other vending machine self-employed guys on how he was kicked out on his new locations.

Here are some options on how to know when it is the time to restock your vending location

1. There are numerous vending machine management software solutions out there. Here is a link and you may opt to check it out.

I never use the vending machine management software since they are expensive and there is a learning curve for all of those.

I use a simple google calendar or office outlook and just write all the locations in a city that are all grouped together, since this will entail efficient gasoline usage costs and easy service for all locations within the vicinity.

It is a matter of copy and paste for the locations that are done today and just move it 2 weeks or 3 weeks to the next date on the outlook calendar.

There is no need of a fancy software to do all the simple stuff.

2. If your machines are the older type and there is no remote monitoring device attached then you just have to follow a certain schedule.

Weekly, Bi Weekly, Month and Bi Monthly

Yes I have locations that are Bi Monthly!

3. If you vending machines are equipped with debit credit card devices then it will be easy to monitor and you will know if the products are getting low on the machines.

I have Nayax and USA Technologies debit credit card devices attached on my newer minority vending machines.

If you log in the Nayax and USA Technologies there is a menu where you can configure it to give you a daily report, weekly report and monthly report.

I have 2 kinds of debit credit readers because I do not want to put all eggs in one basket, you never know if one of the debit credit reader company server is down for maintenance and might be offline sometimes on purchases.

This rarely happens but who knows?

4. If the location is helpful then they will be the one to call you when the vending machine is almost empty. Be sure that there is a company sticker on the vending machine so that they can call or email you if there are some concerns.

5. Visit your locations more often and rotate the products. I got some locations that the more you visit I get extra push on the revenue collections after a month.

This entails a lot of energy and movement. But if this is your thing then it will be enjoyable.

After my visit on this new school location then here it is.

For all your locations you have to make sure what the people want and should abide by it. Taking notes on what products they like to consume.