The Impact of Vending

Ever since vending was first introduced, it has had a significant impact on our society. A vending service can be considered as a convenience service, because it provides products to customers in a convenient manner.

Snack and beverages
Planet Antares vending machines sell snacks and beverages, which are the most popular products that can be found in vending machines today. Americans love snacking, so you can easily say that vending machines have contributed to this a great deal. Wherever you go these days, you are bound to find a snack and beverage vending machine. People would rather buy from vending machines than to go to a retail store where they have to wait for someone to attend to them. With a vending machine, all that you have to do is insert a coin and wait for the product to be delivered right into your hands. Within a matter of seconds you can have what you want.

Low Pricing
The price of products in vending machines are usually cheaper that the retail industry. The snacks and beverages that are sold in Planet Antares vending machines are cheaper than the ones that you will find anywhere else. This means that anybody can afford to buy from vending machines. To keep the prices of the products that you sell low, make sure that you find a supplier that will sell you the products at a good deal.

All kinds of products available
Today vending machines sell a variety of products in vending machines. You can find anything from snacks, beverages, food, cigarettes, newspapers, coffee, and walkmans to iPods. In Japan, there are wider ranges of products available than any other country. You can even buy a pair of jeans from a vending machine in Japan.

Vending machines in schools
Vending machines are very popular in schools, especially snacks and beverage vending machines, like the ones provided by Planet Antares. Schools provide the kind of locations that are ideal for snacks and beverages. Schools today are more focused in offering healthier foods to kids and since vending machines are very convenient for schools; these kinds of products are now available in vending machines that have been placed in schools.

Vending is a great business
People who have operated vending operations have made lots of money. The best thing about vending is that you can start it as a part time or a full time business and still make money. Planet Antares Inc. has provided vending opportunities to a huge number of people, who now have success stories to tell. With a vending business, you can make enough money to take care of all your financial needs.

Financial Independence is Possible with Vending

The chances of Planet Antares vending business failing is fewer than that of other businesses. What almost everybody in this world wants is financial independence so that they don’t have to worry about money all the time. Vending is a very profitable business which can easily lead to success. .

With this business you can be your own boss, which means that you are free to choose your own hours. You can choose to make vending a full time or part time business. Being your own boss, will give total control of the running your own vending business on your own terms. Having to work under somebody can be very frustrating. The main motivation of getting into any business is “money”. Vending is a unique business that allows a person to invest 10 to 20 hours per month and get a return of 100% to 200% within the first year, on money invested. This is what has made a vending business attractive to many people. A Planet Antares vending business can give you a healthy return on your investment within a year or so. With a return on your investment, you can then think of expanding your vending business so that you can earn higher profits.

Income from your Planet Antares vending machine will start as soon as your machines have been placed in a good location. This is an all cash business where there are no bad checks or collection problems to worry about. Over the years the vending business has proven itself to be recession proof.

Money follows financial independence. Vending allows 95% of start up to go for machines and products. You can use your home as your office which allows possible tax write offs that other people never receive. It is well known fact that 50 well located vending machines are worth at least triple the cash value of the vending machines themselves. It is also possible for a business broker to sell a route for two or three times the route’s annual gross profit.

Statistics have shown that just about 70% of vendors start off on a part time basis while maintaining their regular full time job. 85% of them turn to full time vending after a couple of years. Having money or not having it controls what we do in our lives. Investing in a Planet Antares vending business will give you the kind of financial independence that many people are seeking everyday. It has been predicted that the best of vending is yet to come.

Vending is a billion dollar industry and still growing. With a vending business you will experience financial independence which will allow you to control your time, money and ultimately your future.

How Cashless Vending Works

Cashless vending is selling a product that is in a vending machine to a customer without there being a cash transaction. This is a trend that is slowly picking up in the vending industry. This kind of technology can be placed in your Planet Antares vending machine and any other vending machine, if the vending operator wants to switch over to a cashless form of payment.

Benefits
There are great benefits that come with having a cashless payment option in your vending business.

• Increased sales: when you have this technology in your Planet Antares vending machine, your sales will definitely increase. This is because customers will now be able to buy from vending machines without having to carry cash around. Customers don’t see money as part of the sale, so they will not really think about what they are spending. The customers will even be inclined to buy more from the vending machine since they are not using cash.

If the system is in your Planet Antares vending machine, there will never be a ‘no change’ situation with the vending machine. Sales will always be accepted as long as there is stock in the vending machine. Having no change in a vending machine has lead to vending operators losing sales.

• Reduced theft and vandalism: the major source of theft in the vending business is shrinkage due to employee theft. If you have a sizeable Planet Antares vending business, it means that you will need employees to help you run the vending business. A route driver would be the one who will be servicing the vending machines, so you can never really keep a track of what they are doing. Employees can easily decide to dip into the till or they can even add their own stock of merchandize to take the place of yours.

With a cashless system employees will not have a reason to steal money from
your vending business.

Vandalism is also another major problem that vending operators face. Vending
machines that are usually left unsupervised are always the target of miscreants.
With a cashless system, nobody can even try to break into the vending
machine, since there is no money in it.

Understanding the Vending Industry

The need to understand change in the vending industry may seem obvious. However, companies misinterpret clues and arrive at faulty conclusions all the time. Despite all the talk about the need for organizational agility, a surprising number of businesses stay stuck in neutral when they need to execute new strategies. If you stay in place, the competition will easily run over you.

The market place for vending is experiencing more change than others. Today’s economic conditions and fierce competition have resulted in an environment that is noticeably different from that experienced in the past decades. The vending industry has really advanced greatly since it was founded back in 1936.
It is important that your Planet Antares vending business is aligned with the changes taking place in the industry. For this to work, you will need a strategy. In order to survive, you will have to make money at your smaller accounts, achieve higher per capita sales, open new markets, introduce new products, utilize technology, sell new locations and most importantly, you must hold on to your existing Planet Antares vending business.

Cutting costs
When you want to improve the efficiency of your Planet Antares vending business, you can look at cutting down on your costs. But this is a one trick pony. When revenue drops again, another round of cost cutting would have to be implemented, and then another, until you wake up one morning and find out the organization has been crippled. In theory, there is no need to cut costs if good expense management is practiced on an ongoing basis. This is why financial management is very important to both small and large vending businesses.
For your Planet Antares vending business to operate successfully, you will need to have strong controls and preventive measures in place. Smaller businesses are more vulnerable because they typically lack the secondary controls and procedures.

Vending software
Software has given vending operators, the opportunity for more control over route warehouse inventory than ever before. This is an opportunity that can be easily lost when collection procedures are not followed and cash meters are recorded inconsistently.
All vending operations need a culture of excellence that incorporates cost controls. This is required because the market place is changing for the vending industry. The business has changed and that means that you should move with the current as well.

Common Questions about the Vending Business

How much money can I make from a vending business?
The success of your vending business will depend on three factors: location, location and location. Having quality vending machines, like those provided by Planet Antares, in the right location will be a winning combo.

Do I have to pay a commission to the location owner?
It all just depends on the approach that you use. If you are only interested in expanding your Planet Antares vending route, it would then be proper to offer them a percentage of the sales. You can offer anything from 15% to 33%, depending on the location. Another approach can be made through charity. There are some charities that can supply you with stickers to place on your vending machines for a monthly fee of about $1 per machine. Some location owners can allow you space in their location, if you are associated with a charitable organization.

Which are the good locations for vending machines?
Generally locations that have high foot traffic would be ideal for all vending machines. Snack and beverage vending machines like those by Planet Antares would be ideal in places like shopping malls, subways, lunchrooms, bowling alleys and companies with more than 50 employees. This is just to name a few.

Do I need a business license or insurance?
Consult with your local licensing department to find out the specific rules and regulations in your state, because they differ from state to state.

How often would I need to service my vending machine?
Servicing vending machines includes collecting money from the vending machines and refilling them. Planet Antares vending machines sell snacks and beverages and when placed in an ideal location, you might be required to service the vending machines once or twice in a week. It all just depends on how fast the products sell. If you have an established route it can take you about 2 - 3 hours a week to service the vending machines.

Can I run a vending business from my home?
Most established vending businesses started running their businesses from home. This is because one usually starts with one or two vending machines, so it only makes sense that you should run your business from home when you have just started out.

How much do vending machines cost?
Snack and beverage vending machines usually cost anything from $2000 to $3000. Buy from manufacturers that are offering you quality vending machines at reasonable rates. Bulk vending machines would cost about $300 - $500.

'Better for You' Snack Selections in Vending

Studies have shown that vending machines stocked with ‘better for you’ products draw a wider base of customers, when properly merchandised. The demand for healthy food and snack options has risen and fallen throughout the years, due to shifting of consumer focus towards healthy foods.

Offering a healthy option in your Planet Antares vending machine can turn out to be profitable for you if you choose the right products for the right location. There are some operators that have stocked healthier alternatives in their vending machines at the request of clients, only to generate less than robust turns. This does not mean that the same thing will happen to you, you can easily be like others who have found a niche for healthy options, which can result in substantial incremental sales for your Planet Antares vending business.

Many operators have agreed that the percentage of overall sales in the “better-for-you” alternatives is always rather small and that it’s their conventional high-fat, sugar rich products that consumers actually buy. This is why it is very important that you choose the right kind of location to vend healthy products.

‘Better for you’ products are a must in food and snack vending machines. The quantity of these healthier alternatives is what you will have to decide on. If you are a Planet Antares vending operator who believes that healthy lifestyles are here to stay, you can place healthier options in your vending machines, because this will not only benefit the consumer, but you as well.

Healthy options in your vending business can also be done in small scale. You don’t have to place only healthy options in your vending machines, because you can never be to sure about what kind of response you will receive from the customers. Try placing a “healthy” column in your Planet Antares vending machine that is dedicated to low fat alternatives such as pretzels, granola bars and cereal bars. These products are known to be strong sellers. Depending on the locations response, you can continue maintaining the column or you can even add more columns.

Despite the fact that healthier products are more costly than regular products, health conscious people are always willing to spend more to buy the products, because they know the reason why they are buying the products.