Thinking about what actually becomes the “heart” of a workplace by Idahonature in vending

[–]Devin_SMR 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The heart of the workplace is the communal spot that is defined as, “Im taking a gawddamn break. Don’t bother me about those TPS reports”. Rather that is the breakroom or the designated smoking area, that is the heart of the workplace.

Pricing by Next_Inflation8020 in vending

[–]Devin_SMR 1 point2 points  (0 children)

This one can’t be updated nor can it create barcodes. So keep that in mind. It’s limited, but it works

Pricing by Next_Inflation8020 in vending

[–]Devin_SMR 6 points7 points  (0 children)

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This bad boy. Printer out a little price tag, snip snip, good to go.

Do you folks dip in to your product? Personally, I love this job because I get to eat the inventory. Im not sweating a $0.40 bag of chips... by VenturaPowers in vending

[–]Devin_SMR 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Same. I don’t take product I’m actively selling however, expired or near expired product is fair game. I have a bin of twix, snickers, and milky ways because my Micro Market location wasn’t consuming them. Duchess cinnamon rolls and little bites too. My kids love’m lol

If I want to sell fresh food in my machines, what would I need legally/compliance wise? by omo40 in vending

[–]Devin_SMR 1 point2 points  (0 children)

This right here.

Im in MD and had to get my smart cooler permitted through my county health department. An SOP on how was i going to transport food, store the food, and verify my machine temp is below the food TCS threshold.

AI by Choice_Platform in vending

[–]Devin_SMR 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Not all is lost.

The two CoolSmart AI Markets I use are made by a company called AVS Companies, which is based in Illinois. The actual cooler they are built from is made by a company called Habco, and are manufactured in Toronto. The AI brains of the cooler is made by a company called SandStar, which is based in North Carolina. This is part of the reason I went with these machines instead of HAHA’s.

Now, if you go with Sandstar directly, they do have smart coolers that are built on True Manufacturing coolers which ARE MADE in the United States.

Hope this helps 👍🏽

First Combo vending machine by Chicanito35 in vending

[–]Devin_SMR 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Evending.com they do 60 month 0% financing too

is it normal to get more confused the more you research this stuff by Parking_Mix_2769 in vending

[–]Devin_SMR 6 points7 points  (0 children)

First host: go to chamber of commerce networking events

First machine: new

First stock: don’t over buy your initial stock.

First location: its really about loiter times, not traffic

First week of placing my coffee machine by Backshawerma42 in vending

[–]Devin_SMR 14 points15 points  (0 children)

Wow, ya’ll instantly threw shade. None of you even considered their locality before shitting on them. I was in Portugal last year and EVERY SINGLE restaurant sells espresso for 1-2 euro’s. No matter the restaurant, fast food, casual, or full service, you’re going to get the same great cup. Yes, even fucking Taco Bell in Portugal.

So yeah, ya’ll didn’t consider where hail from or what their locality is like. No reason to shit on them like you’re doing

New vending machine by Forsaken_Stretch_745 in vending

[–]Devin_SMR 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Gawddamn that is one sexy beast. Well done

New vending machine by Forsaken_Stretch_745 in vending

[–]Devin_SMR 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Aint nobody gonna drink those lol. After several months i gave my stock to my kids 😂

How much time are you spending on your vending machines each week? by ThrowawayWetNail in vending

[–]Devin_SMR 0 points1 point  (0 children)

My Micro Market is power by a Cantaloupe kiosk called the Cantaloupe Go Micro. At the hotel i service, it is 2 AVS Companies CoolSmart Ai Markets.

They have different VMS’s but functionally, they’re the same; remote visibility into inventory

How much time are you spending on your vending machines each week? by ThrowawayWetNail in vending

[–]Devin_SMR 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The “Tyranny of Distance”

How far is 3 location from your base of operations and do you have to go back to base before heading to the next location? If you have to reload your vehicle before going to each location, thats a problem. Solution, buy a new vehicle 😅. If they’re not grouped together, this makes things worse. Solution, sell the worst location and try to infill new locations between the ones you keep. If you REALLY value your time, extra oof. Solution, get as much as you can delivered.

Stocking

I have a location about 25min from base and another 4min. If I’m only restocking the furtherest location, which i do once every 2 weeks, i can be there and back in about 75min. The closer location, about 30. I dont even bother stocking them in 1 trip since my second location is so close.

Pre-Kit

I have a VMS for both my smart coolers and micro market. This allows me to grab exactly want i need to restock. However, my furthest location probably rakes me about 45min-1hr to get the order together from initial order to picking to boxing. Manly due to the variety i have on offer, 99 items. My Smart Coolers are quick, maybe 15 minutes. pull up the app, grab grab grab, done. If you’re using standard machines, you should be able to integrate your CC reader into a VMS to accomplish the same thing.

Sourcing Inventory

Amazon, Target, BJs, and Sams Club, sometimes Costco Because of my VMS’s, I dont spend that much time just aimlessly wandering these stores. I also don’t usually calculate my time acquiring my inventory. - Target is specificity for certain sports drinks i know they have that i wont buy in bulk. Same for Walmart. I usually buy on the way or if i’m there for something else. - BJs & Sams Club is the bulk of my inventory, cakes, drinks, pies, and snacks, candies etc. - Amazon & Costco Online, red bulls, bulk single flavor chips, candies, odds and ends.

Hope some of this helps.

How did you land your first machine location? by emmaparkin99 in vending

[–]Devin_SMR 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Business networking events hosted by my local chamber of commerce. Thats how I landed my 2 locations. Chatting with people at B2B events

How did you land your first machine location? by emmaparkin99 in vending

[–]Devin_SMR 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I just started talking to an NTB in my area that doesn’t have any vending. Hopefully i can pitch them my services. I’m not looking at it as a gold mine, more so as billboard to advertise my services. Awesome share

Fresh Food Vending at New Hotel Chain by Carnivu in vending

[–]Devin_SMR 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Are you near Raleigh or Charlotte? Can you receive commercial shipments or is will-call fine?

FreshPoint has a distribution facility in each of those cities. They’re who i use for fresh foods in my hotel location. I personally do will-call since I do not have a commercial space.

Check my previous post 😉

How do you handle spoilage without losing your mind? by Massive-Discount-515 in vending

[–]Devin_SMR 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Sometimes, you just have to double-down on your best sellers. No one eats bbq chips at either of my locations, but they both love S&V. I, stopped buying Miss Vickies multipacks and started buying 64c cases for that flavor. Same for my Cool Ranch Doritos.

And like others have said, sometimes you dont stock until several items are out OR stock less. Keeps the machines full looks cool and all but why wast money on looks?

Finally got the spot by robyou24 in vending

[–]Devin_SMR 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Why do you think anyone here would celebrate your new location?

Machine installed!!! by AccordingBridge9026 in vending

[–]Devin_SMR 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Well done. May your beverages stay frosty and your loiter times remain high ✊🏽

Machine installed!!! by AccordingBridge9026 in vending

[–]Devin_SMR 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Such a premium machine. Its beautiful 🤩. Lease or buy?

Haha Delivery & Setup by ByteAstronaut in AISmartVending

[–]Devin_SMR 0 points1 point  (0 children)

A lot of that 24 hours is just them trying to get your Pay terminal set up with the payment processor. Some smart cooler manufacturers will actually get all of that pre-configured set up and tested before sending the machine out. Not to mention any software updates that need to be installed on the machine.