Specialty Vending Machines

You may have seen some websites with pictures of crazy Japanese vending machines. These vending machines have things for sale in them that would be unimaginable in America. Japanese vending machines sell almost anything you can think of. In restaurants and hotels these automated machines replace cashiers. In Japan there is supposedly one vending machine per 23 people. Thats over 5 million vending machines!

I'm sure you have seen some odd vending machines at a mall or store. Perhaps it was a huge gumball machine. Before investing in an expensive machine you need to proceed with caution. There is a good chance that you just aren't going to turn a profit off of a machine like this - especially if you purchased the vending machine brand new.

Marketing is important when it comes to vending machines - but don't forget your goal is to make money. In fact, turning a profit isn't really enough.You need to turn a profit that justifies the time and money you invested in the vending machine business. If you can't do this (or perhaps you've already had bad luck in the vending machine business) figure out what you did wrong. Were the vending machines too expensive? If I have to spend, and risk, $100,000 to make $1,000 it just isn't worth it -- especially when a risk free bank account could have done the same thing. However, its not a complete loss. What you have learned is valuable.

So, perhaps selling underwear or toilet paper from a vending machine just wouldn't work in America (at least not until minimum wage is $25 an hour.) As the economy develops and costs drop this could become justifiable some day in the future. I can guarantee you this; if novelty vending machines become profitable there will be a lot of them.

©2004