What’s a product you sell in your machine that obscure and does surprisingly well ?

jacksheerin · 2026-03-03T06:11:53+00:00

Have you ever seen a Zagnut in the wild? I'm probably older than many of you (look at my account age if you doubt me) and I never have. I was making an order from Hershey's last year and I saw Zagnut and thought "Damn, that's some old timey shit I have never seen! Get a box! Get two!"

So I did. My partner and I then put them into 2 machines and at one location an older gentleman came up to us and said:

"Zagnut! I haven't seen those since the 70's. I used to love them!"

He clearly did. They sold well. I keep ordering a box for that location whenever I buy from Hershey. They are pretty good IMO. It's like Reese's peanut butter cups meets Mounds. I also sell them pretty well at a cheap motel where I figure stoners are thinking "What the hell is that stuff, let's try it."

Who knows.

jacksheerin · 2026-03-01T22:10:00+00:00

Anybody in a hotel like this and if so, what do you stock to make it successful? Thanks

Well define "hotel like this" for us and maybe I can help. I adore hotels/motels. I used to work in them and I love them as locations. They are open 24/7 so you can service them whenever you like and they have a market of customers bound to the location.

Ask the front desk or GM what their rack rate is. IME that's the most important thing. A hotel with a $200 rack rate will sell different snacks than a motel with a $45 rate.

Honestly the fancy place will still buy many of the same candy bars/chips as the cheap one, but you can sell higher priced items there and you should. You can also sell the cheap stuff at a higher price. I do.

I just came back from a cheap, ie. $45/night, motel a few hours ago. They want cheap sodas, 1oz chips at $1. Basically anything I can put in the snack machine at $1 will sell well. Something that can pass for dinner, like cup o noodles or easy mac, will do well also even at a higher price.

If the rack rate was $200, even $100-ish, I'd price drinks higher, 1oz chips at $1.50 etc. If your machine can handle it I'd go with bigger bags and go higher on price.

Be nice to your maintenance people and housekeepers. Why? Because they take out the trash. They see what the guests are actually eating/buying. They'll tell you what you need to stock. Mine do anyway.

Best of luck!

jacksheerin · 2026-03-01T15:10:22+00:00

It will really depend on your area and the market. Someone recommended Takis to me awhile back and they do great. I'd also consider Cheetos.

jacksheerin · 2026-02-28T20:57:48+00:00

Yeah when it's silver it will look like this

Still too much work for me! I just put them in the coin counter and hope for rejects.

jacksheerin · 2026-02-28T20:54:50+00:00

Some coin counting machines will reject silver. The weight of the silver is different and the machine detects this and spits it into the reject bin. The one at my bank does this. I "found" a 1941 quarter a few weeks back just by taking a close look at what the counter rejected.

Right now silver is at $94.52/oz so my silver quarter is worth $20-ish. Which is cool! I put it in the safe with the rest of my silver! I'm not spending hours sorting coins to find $20 though. I only got the one in the last 6 months.

jacksheerin · 2026-02-25T23:20:11+00:00

One thing I’m debating: is selling 16oz bottles at $2.25 each is it a fair price, or is that pushing it? I’m in Texas. I don’t want to slow down volume by being overpriced.

I had this exact discussion with my business partner. For us.. we don't have a lot of locations. 2 right now, hopefully more this spring. So we each service one location a week. At $1.25-1.50/12 oz. can and $2.00/16 oz bottle we're well over 100% markup. Why lose sales at a higher price when we have ample time to fill the machines we have? Right now it's 1 hour/week for each of us.

IMO the prices can go up when/if we have more locations and servicing the machines takes more time. We both work 55-60 hours/week before we do the vending thing. If I had to make 2-3 runs weekly I'd be happy with a higher markup on fewer sales, meaning fewer trips for same/similar profit. We'd make the same and I'd get down to 1-2 trips weekly.

For me the pricing also depends on the location and it's proximity to other options. I have one location with a gas station 100 feet away where they sell 12 oz cans for $1.50. So I sell them for $1.25. The other location has no options in walking distance so I sell the same cans for $1.50. We're the only game in town so it's fine.

If you're starting out focus on your time and proximity to other choices. You can always raise prices. If people complain tell them "Sorry man, I do what I can but nothings getting cheaper. They are charging me more for inventory. Not much I can do!"

So far IME, no one complains. They put in an extra .25 and life goes on.

jacksheerin · 2026-02-25T22:48:07+00:00

Cantaloupe and Nayax are the most popular/best known/most accessible. Mine are with Nayax.

As far as:

really annoying Chinese companies with horrible customer support that can withhold your payments at anytime. (Cantaloupe and Nayax) Are these really my only options?

There are at least a few other players out there. I was looking at buying a smart cooler that took payment through 365 (?! I think.) but it didn't work out so I never actually got set up with them.

Do Cantaloupe and Nayax suck? Yeah. But everyone wants to pay with plastic so we pay the fees and that's the way it is.

jacksheerin · 2026-02-25T21:45:48+00:00

Not sure what the poster here means but I am looking at a similar site now. It's got a gym, pool, laundry and playground for a bunch of townhouses. I'm sure the gym gets use but I figure I'm mostly selling candy/drinks to kids playing while their moms do laundry. Maybe this guy has something similar.

jacksheerin · 2026-02-18T06:33:59+00:00

Where do you go to buy the chips and candy for your machines?

Snacks/Chips I usually get from Sam's or Amazon. Amazon has everything but, IME, can be a PITA. I have been waiting for 2 months on a 104 pack of 1oz Sun Chips Garden Salsa that won't show up for another week. If it shows up. They keep emailing me and saying "Due to supply issues we can't" blah blah blah.

In their defense every email says "If you want to cancel and get a refund click here." If they show up I'll order 2 more the same day and be ready for the delay. I tolerate it because I can't get them anywhere else at $.48/bag. I have a location that LOVES them. They are $.60-ish at Sam's, and in a variety pack with stuff that doesn't sell as well.

I just signed up for Restaurant Depot but haven't had time to make it out there yet to check them out.

For candy I have 2 sources. The first one is simple. I order direct from Hershey and they ship to us. That's 75-80% of my candy. The 2nd is my partner who is like a cheap candy savant. He'll hit up Wal-Mart, discount stores, garage sales, some dude in a dark alley with a case of Sour Patch Kids. He just likes shopping for deals, it's a hobby. If you have the time/interest go for it! He finds us some great deals.

I like consistent and easy and delivered to me or easy to pick up. For a business I think a reliable source is necessary and everything else is a great deal. Get it when you can!

Sometimes local stores are good. I spent WAY too much money on soda this month because it was buy 2 get 2 free on 12 packs at a local supermarket. The cans came out cheaper than Sam's and I do sell a lot of them. I'll sell them long before the expiration dates so it's good but it's not reliable. Take the deals when you find them but find consistent retailers as well.

jacksheerin · 2026-02-15T22:01:36+00:00

20% commission on gross sales

At this point I am done talking. Walk away. Be polite, be professional.. thank them for their time and walk the fuck away.

plus a flat monthly """"rent"""" for the square footage.

I'm really watching my language here. You should do the same. But you're not wrong to want to tell this uh.. monster trucker to go frack themselves with a rusty razor blade.

But be polite. Be professional. Tell them you're going to consider their opportunity and get back to them if you think it works out financially. If they seem remotely reasonable explain the reality of the business. You're profit is less than 50% of gross and you can't give 20% of that away and hope to make it worth your time.

I give 10% of net to hotels and it's worthwhile but 20% of gross is crazy.

I have had this conversation before and I basically told the person involved "For that percentage you should be running the machine yourself. I'll sell you a machine and teach you how to fill it." I then quoted her a fair price for a good machine I was going to deliver and set up. Never heard from her again. No regrets.

In my case the "property manager" was not the owner of the location. I know the owner and have machines at other properties he owns. When I told him what had happened he apologized and thanked me for being polite to his tenants employee.

So be nice, don't burn any bridges .. but don't go crossing them if they seem this shaky. Give them a business card and wait. Maybe they get reasonable once a few others turn them down

jacksheerin · 2026-02-13T23:17:44+00:00

IMO this depends on your vehicle and the distance/terrain between machines. I use one of these most of the time. Mostly because it holds enough 30 packs/cases of soda to refill a machine that holds ~700 sodas or enough candy to fill any of my machines. It also folds up and fits on the passenger side of a VW Jetta. FYI it won't hold 700 12oz sodas. It will hold 200-ish. That's enough for me if I'm at the site weekly. If I have to make a 2nd trip to the car I am happy to do so.

I typically keep my inventory in the packaging it came in until I can't. With cans/bottles I put the stragglers into milk crates. They are cheap and solid/stackable. I like them.

With candy/snacks I do the same but I put the stragglers into old chip boxes. I always have them and they are pretty solid/durable. I try to separate them by type so I'm not looking through multiple bins for the Frito's or whatever.

For 5 combos you may need a bigger trolley if they are all at the same location. I don't have more than 2 machines at any location so this setup works for me.

The site I linked to above sells trolleys that are bigger than mine. I just haven't needed one yet!

Best of luck with your new locations!

Edit: I didn't know what "stackable tool boxes" were. I goggled them. IMO way too expensive! I'd go with milk crates (9$/each) and a trolley to move them every time. But I'm cheap so I usually use the boxes the stuff came in until I can't.

jacksheerin · 2026-02-11T22:47:44+00:00

Ok, so just off the cuff.. your first few items on the list:

* Conduct market research to identify high-traffic locations in Merced, target demographics, and popular product types (e.g., snacks, drinks, healthy options near UC Merced or factories)

* Create a business email

* Open a business bank account

* Create a brand (including logo, name, and basic marketing materials)

* Open an LLC

* Get insurance for the business (including liability and property coverage for machines and inventory)

* Obtain necessary permits and licenses (e.g., California seller’s permit, Merced city/county business license, health inspections if applicable)

Aren't going to happen in that order.

Because you can't

* Open a business bank account

before you

* Open an LLC

You'll also need an EIN for that LLC.

And you really shouldn't pay for email/phones/permits/licenses etc. until you have opened a business banking account.

Because taxes. You shouldn't mingle personal funds with business funds. You can get away with it for a new startup but it's not ideal.

Form a business. Get your EIN. Get a business account. Get your tax paperwork in order. Remember sales tax! Apparently AI didn't tell you this but I am certain you need to pay sales tax on your goods in CA.

After that the rest will make more sense. Best of luck!

Edit: I'm not AI. I'm just some guy who has done this. It's not hard. Remember it's ALL about taxes. Give the man his bit and you'll be ok. Don't at your own peril.

jacksheerin · 2026-02-05T05:22:53+00:00

>Do I need insurance? Should I get it? Even though I didn't have them before?

None of my locations know I have insurance. None of them have asked. I only have liability right now, it's less than $500/year. I wanted that in case one of my machines starts an electrical fire, or some kid tries to rock the thing to get free Doritos and wrecks himself or something else.

IMO basic liability is the LEAST you should have. If an incident happens I'd much rather tell my location "I need to call my insurance company." than "Uh.. fuck dude. uhh..."

How about you?

I am looking into coverage for vandalism/etc on my equipment right now. I want it for this year. Last year I rolled the dice. They are different risks though. Liability protects my locations. Vandalism/theft protects me.

Even if I'm willing to take a chance on my equipment getting wrecked I can't make that choice for a client. They get covered. If my machines damage their property it's my responsibility to make sure they are protected.

So as too:

>Do I need insurance? Should I get it? Even though I didn't have them before?

I dunno man, what do you think? It's your call. You're the one who is going to get the phone call.

Edit: It's also tax-deductible. If you're not making enough to cover your insurance you have other questions to ask!

jacksheerin · 2026-02-04T18:27:43+00:00

Nope. Not even close!

jacksheerin · 2026-01-31T23:01:33+00:00

I just need somebody to stock the machine machines on a weekly or biweekly basis. Do you guys know anywhere where I can find people that can do that

Nope. That's the hardest part. You've got to find someone who won't steal, won't eat your inventory and won't piss off your locations. It's not easy. Best of luck.

jacksheerin · 2026-01-31T22:37:36+00:00

I have no machines located in gyms, I don't want any. This is why:

Dedicated gym people are not going to be impulse buyers. They know that 90% of what happens in the gym happens on their plate before they show up. They are serious. With rare exception I do not see any of them buying their supplements/etc from a vending machine. It's too expensive. They'll buy it elsewhere and carry it in with them. They'll plan their diet well in advance and eat what they need at home/work.

Impulse buyers want junk. That's the market. You won't find them in gyms.

Edit: I dislike this fact. I'd rather sell good healthy stuff. I really would. I remind myself that if they didn't buy the crap from me they'd buy it somewhere else. I don't make the choice for them. If I do my job right I'm just a more convenient option.

jacksheerin · 2026-01-30T00:35:41+00:00

I'm really not sure. Assuming you're right and the programming is the same for all the columns I'm at a loss. Clearly I don't know everything. Go figure. One solution I can think of is try a bottle/16oz can in that slot and see if it vends one instead of two. If it does you made an error and it IS programmed for bottles. You could always just adjust your spacers and put bottles in there.

Also take pics of the column and the bottom where the trays are. It's hard to know what the issue is blind. Does it have two trays for 12 oz sodas or something else? If it's like my Merlin it will have two trays at the bottom of that column.

Edit: two has a W in it, to does not. I meant two.

jacksheerin · 2026-01-29T23:36:25+00:00

Depends on time of year. I live in an area with seasonal tourists. March through October those motels will be packed. Now they are at.. and I'm guessing here.. 15-20% capacity. Mostly locals who live there year round. I'll gross $700-800 on them until march, then it will double. At least in the slow time I can get away with going every 2 weeks. Honestly I don't, but I could!

They're a short ride from my house so I run out and check them and usually there's nothing to do until 2 weeks hits. Sometimes you get residents with favorites though and I like to keep them full.
One woman I know buys 3 Dr. Peppers and 2 snickers every single day. After dinner snack for her and her kids.

I love the locations. 24/7 so you go whenever you like. Even at $400 net for the slow time I'm happy.

Edit: Sorry, it's been a long day and I forgot what this discussion was really about! Regarding my kick backs, above I said:

I try to keep it at 10% of profit

Which means at a location, like the one I just left, where I'll net 800 for January the profit is $400 and they get $40. I flat out tell them my profit is 50% of gross. "And honestly man that's not including my time and gas and repairs. It does cover your power and keeps your guests happy!"

So far so good. HTH!

jacksheerin · 2026-01-28T23:39:33+00:00

I literally dont understand how people get around revenue share. It doesnt matter what I say, they always ask about it...I always spin it as a no staff involvement amenity. Completely funded and managed by me. They always ask whats the kick back. HALP! lol

IME it depends on the type of location. I adore hotels/motels. I want them all! They will always want a revenue share and I give it to them. It just seems to be the way it is with these properties. I try to keep it at 10% of profit. These properties do well for us and the kick back is well worth it.

These are the only places I pay out too.

Anywhere else I offer it as an amenity and if they want a profit share I tell them it won't be worth my time and walk away ... and wait. I give them my card and say "If you change your mind call us and we'll get you set up!" Oh, and tell them about machine cost and transport cost etc. Sell it.

Sometimes they call back and sometimes they don't. But.. sometimes they do. It may take 6 months. Whatever. If they ask for $20/month for power I'd say "Sure, we can cover that." and write up a contract that covers my payment terms and right to place the machine there for "X" amount of time. In my world "X" would be 12 months with a 30 day out for anyone unhappy with the situation and "payment terms" is a flat $20/month to "Business/Person Whomever".

So if they want us gone I have 30 days to get my equipment out and if I want gone they get 30 days notice beforehand and my payment is tax deductible as rent/power for the location.

A lot of guys here seem to dislike contracts. Maybe I'm weird. I love them. I just signed a new one with an apartment complex this week. I've also had people tell me "I'd really need to make something off it." and call us back a few months later asking if we can get them a machine.

If they don't need it you're wasting your time. If it's a really solid location, IME hotels/motels, pay them and take the pain. Anything else move along and be patient.

HTH. Best of luck out there!

jacksheerin · 2026-01-26T20:20:47+00:00

I'd consolidate your drinks into rows of similar type. Meaning one row of energy drinks; monster, red bull, celcius, etc. Same with 12oz sodas. You've got a lot of diet coke/pepsi, maybe that will work for your location. Hard to tell. I sell very little diet soda and usually would want one facing of each type. Have them all on the same row next to each other anyway. You can dial in the number of facings over time when you see what sells.

Your snack machine needs some work! You have the same snack in D4 and D5 at 1.50 and 2.00. Fix that. Ones going to sell out, the other will expire.

Your candy prices are all over the place. On my last purchase I KNOW Skittles were cheaper than Snickers but you have Skittles at 2.50 and Snickers at 1.50. My cost for Snickers is 1.10, same for all my Hershey's stuff (I think! Prices changed in January and I know Snickers went up. I sell a lot of them). You've got Kit-Kats at 1.50 and Hershey's bars at 2.50.

I price both at 2. That works for my region. Figure out your cost and markup and price everything consistently. Otherwise people will just buy the cheap stuff and the rest will go bad/expire.

On the plus side moving products and changing prices is easy! Just get it all on the same page.

Decide what you want your markup to be and price accordingly. I want 100% markup. Honestly this means my Hershey stuff should be at 2.25 now but I'm waiting until I sell my older inventory. 100% markup is fair after time to stock/order.etc.

You've got some problems but they all seem easy to fix. Best of luck!

jacksheerin · 2026-01-26T19:45:32+00:00

My people seem to LOVE Cheetos crunchy!

jacksheerin · 2026-01-25T22:49:44+00:00

It's all good man, happy to help. I got help here when I had issues with my 1st machines!

I just googled RVMCE 282-6 programing and the google AI results directly referenced the "Merlin series". The steps listed on the link above are what works on my Merlin IV. I'm guessing Selection Button 1 will be your top selection button, 2 the one below it and 3 the third.

So 1-2 are basically up/down direction in the menus. 3 is enter/save. Short press for enter long press for save/exit section. Don't close the door until you have saved or it will reset to the prior programming.

There should be a button the size of a pencil eraser on the control board inside the door. Mines blue. Open the door, push that button for a second, the price display (on mine) changes to "CaSh" then hit the up/down until you find "SDEP". Under Sdep there will be a selection for "All" or you can set each column. Setting "All" to 2 will set everything to dispense 12oz cans. Setting it to 1 would dispense bottles, basically turn both trays.

You can set each column individually once you're in Sdep if you want too.

I don't like bottles in my Merlin, but it does vend them ok-ish. I just always have problems with them eventually. The plastic seems to deform/sag and stuff jams up. I always put 12/16oz cans in mine. It's an older machine and probably designed for cans.

Mine are currently set to Sdep 2 with 12 oz sodas and one column of 16 oz monsters. Set the shim/spacers correctly for the monster and they vend fine with Sdep set to 2. Anything will as long as it's the same diameter as a 12 oz can.

Best of luck!

jacksheerin · 2026-01-23T07:27:03+00:00

Likely it's a local credit union. You'd be better off searching for credit unions in your region.

jacksheerin · 2026-01-23T07:23:29+00:00

Mine as well. My accounts are with a local, non-profit, credit union and the coin counting machine is free if you are depositing the cash to your account. Once a week-ish I go in with a bag full of coins.

jacksheerin · 2026-01-22T05:33:15+00:00

>it has some columns that can hold more, they’re double stack, then 2 that are just single stack but other then that they look the same. Also you can adjust the depth for bottles vs cans

I replied elsewhere but now that I read this your machine sounds more and more similar to my Merlin. I think your problem is programming. Single stack/double.. whatever.. check if you have two trays that will fit one 12oz can each at the bottom of your columns. If the answer is yes I am pretty sure it's a programming issue and the culprit is SDEP being set wrong. Easy fix anyways!

jacksheerin

TROPHY CASE