A snack machine is a device that sells piece goods (snack in English means “snack”). These vending machines usually sell chips, sandwiches, crackers, chocolate bars, drinks and other goods for a light snack.
This line of business in our country is quite new and not entirely profitable. Indeed, many people prefer to eat in cafeterias, cafes or right at work, bringing lunch with them in a container. But you can still organize a profitable business selling snacks. It is only important to think over geography, competently calculate profitability and, of course, choose a high-quality assortment.
Vending in Russia
While abroad, with the help of such devices, they trade almost everything, in our country the most popular are coffee and snack machines. Snack machines appeared as an addition to vending machines with coffee: they can often be seen where sales reach 40-50 glasses a day. This indicates that the point is popular among buyers, which means that many will not mind buying a sandwich or a chocolate bar for coffee.
In Europe, office centers are also equipped with vending machines with industrial goods, in addition to snack and coffee. It is possible that in a few years this trend will reach our country.
Profitability calculation
Snack vending machines pay off very quickly, because the margin here can reach 400-500%. The key to success is the use of high quality ingredients and careful calculation of the value of each product. Focus on demand, but also consider the characteristics of your products. For example, selling chocolate bars is unlikely to succeed at a price well above the store. But if in your vending machine you can buy a cup of fragrant espresso made from natural grains or a delicious sandwich - it's another matter. The cost will be much higher, and yet not as high as in a restaurant.
Buyers themselves respond to coffee from a vending machine in the most positive way, especially if the manufacturer did not save and took natural grains as the basis. The drink is strong and aromatic, with a thick foam. As for snacks, for example, sandwiches, they are tasty, like home, and much cheaper than in any catering establishment.
Keep in mind that many products have a limited shelf life, so the margin on them is lower. Nevertheless, the buyer must be sure: the high price guarantees high quality. Do not deceive his expectations.
Seat selection
Installation of snack machines in the office center or supermarket is often paid - about 1,500 rubles per month. If you are a beginner businessman, you can try to look for free points: for example, small shops, universities, not very popular business centers.
According to reviews of people who have already tried this type of business, for starters you can choose one machine and place it near a small institution. But if you plan to develop and establish a network of vending machines, it is better to pay attention to larger offices, with several hundred employees and visitors.
However, orientation to the flow is also not an indicator. For example, visitors to a supermarket are unlikely to be your target audience: they are only interested in buying products for the home. But train stations, insurance offices, car services and other institutions where people have to spend time on hold are a much better choice.
Business expansion
At first, your machine may not be very popular. If for a long time no more than 10 cups of coffee have been sold per day, the machine must be moved to another place. But selling from 40 cups or more is a sure sign that everything is going as it should. So, in addition to coffee, you can safely install a snack machine - the client will be happy to buy chocolate for a cup of coffee. The inverse relationship is also obvious: a person will come for a sandwich, see a coffee machine nearby and will not be able to resist a fragrant drink.
Assortment is yours.
Let's say you bought a brand new high-quality machine and you have great expectations from this business. Do not make a common mistake: do not load the cheapest products in the machine in an effort to increase profitability. Buyers should like your snacks and drinks - only in this case their flow will increase.
Work with the assortment should be carried out constantly, and not only at the initial stage of development. Change snacks periodically if they sell poorly, or install additional cells with ones that are more popular than others. You can also lay out more analogues of your favorite products: in addition to cookies, cakes or waffles; to soda - juice or iced tea.
The target audience
The most popular in our country is the FoodBox snack machine. The price policy also depends on where it is installed. For example, in universities and colleges, where students have every ruble in their account, it will be more rational to sell the most affordable goods. But visitors to the elite shopping center - the contingent is more "capricious", so here you can play for quality, at a higher price.
The best reference should be feedback. After some time, you can see for yourself which products are sold and which are not, and draw conclusions. And you can ask the buyers themselves regarding their opinions and wishes for product quality.
Machine Service
Sooner or later you will have to update the range. It is better not to refuel the machine during working hours - there is a risk of causing discontent among regular customers. The optimal time is at the end of the day or shortly before the opening of the institution in which it is installed.
A snack machine is more difficult to maintain than a coffee machine. You will have to constantly monitor prices and track the shelf life of products. This is done every day, because it is impossible to allow empty cells in no case.
True, thanks to modern simplification of logistics processes, it is possible to optimize service and respond in a timely manner to changing demand. For example, using the built-in GSM module, you will get access to control of banknotes and coins, tracking sales statistics, and also learn about the expiration date of a particular product.
Registration of a vending business
In our country, there is no special law on vending activities. However, this does not mean that it is not regulated in any way. The installation of coffee and snack machines in a residential area should be carried out only after obtaining permission from the authorities. The machine itself is a small architectural form, so you will also need to contact the authority dealing with problems of urban planning and architecture.
Any trading activity involves obtaining a trade patent. Moreover, the number of such documents depends on the number of machines in your use, and on their location. In a number of countries, several snack machines located nearby and forming a network require a patent for each of them. And in other cases, you can do just one. A permit from the fire control authorities and the sanitary-epidemiological service will also be required. It is issued after a preliminary examination.
Buyer Rights and Taxes
Any businessman should be aware of the main articles of the law on consumer rights.Therefore, selling only high-quality goods, and making the machine itself as convenient and simple as possible for customers. They should be provided with honest information about the product: name, capacity or weight, grade, and price tag. If he is not there, you, as the owner of this machine, risk paying a fine.
Those who decided to open their own business and bought a snack machine need to register as an individual entrepreneur or owner of an LLC. In addition to paying taxes in a form specified by law, insurance premiums will also have to be paid.
