I live in a small rural town and I think there may be some great spots in my city to put some in.
Anybody have experience with this business venture?
Any suggestions?
Some things to consider:
1. How are you going to transfer the vending machines from location to location? Do you already have a pickup truck? Sometimes you might have to move a machine multiple times before you find a profitable spot. You’ll also need a dolly made for large appliances and a hand cart
2. Factor in the cost: gas and mileage on your vehicle, costs of the food and drink items, most importantly your time. You don’t want to spend hours driving and filling up machines and only taking home a couple of dollars.
3. The cost of the machines. In 2021 having a card reader is a must have and they can run $100 and up. The machine itself can be $500 at the lowest and upwards of $5k for new machines
4. Do you have somewhere to store the machines? Sometimes you might need to store the machines if they’re not working or you might purchase a machine for $500 but it needs a new coin mechanism etc. These are usually cheap inexpensive fixes but you need somewhere to do the repairs prior to transferring them to the site.
Some hacks: buy the machines used on offer up and other resell sites like eBay. When starting off never buy a new machine. Scout the locations first before buying the machine. Call or visit them in person and ask if they are interested in vending services.
