We find ourselves regularly explaining how marketable nutritional snacks are in the vending business. We like to tell customers that there's really nothing you cannot sell in vending machines. If you can fit it in a vending machine and find a good location for that machine, somebody will buy what you are selling.
That's not to say that nutritional snacks shouldn't be in vending machines or that people only buy them because they have no other choice. On the contrary, there is a huge market for nutritional snacks in places like gyms, leisure centres, hospitals, and even company break rooms and cafeterias. Succeeding in the nutritional vending business is really just a matter of hooking up with the right supplier, getting the right machines, and finding the best locations to place those machines.
They Sell Cars in Singapore
A while back we published a blog post talking about how the Japanese have mastered the art of vending. Japan has the largest number of vending machines per volume and per capita. Moreover, they literally will sell just about anything. From mobile phone accessories to fresh fruits and vegetables to personal care products, there's a vending machine for nearly everything in Japan. Believe it or not though, Singapore has topped them.
There is a car seller in Singapore that lays claim to the "world's largest luxury car vending machine", according to the Telegraph. Autobahn Motors has built a unique showroom that operates as a vending machine of sorts, dispensing luxury nameplates like Lamborghini, Ferrari, and Bentley.
The Telegraph describes the showroom as a 15-story showroom with cars being displayed in individual compartments covered by glass. Just like selecting a sports drink or power bar from a Nutrivend vending machine, Autobahn Motors customers simply select the car they want to see and activate it on a computerised touchscreen.
In mere minutes, an automated system retrieves the car and conveys it to ground level. From there customers and sales representatives do what they do. It is a fascinating idea born out of a lack of commercial building space in Singapore. The owner of the dealership had no choice but to build up because there wasn't enough room to build out.
People Will Buy What They Want
The point of bringing up the Autobahn Motors giant vending machine is to say that people will buy what they want if you give them the opportunity to do so. Yes, the car vending machine is a novelty right now. But we can guarantee you that people will be buying cars at Autobahn Motors long after the novelty wears off. It's the cars they want; the way those cars are stored and displayed is secondary.
Statistics show that consumers want healthier snack options. If you make them available through nutritional vending machines on your premises, people will buy them. Remember, there's nothing you can't sell in vending machines. Just place the machines in the right location and let them do their thing.
Sources:
The Telegraph – http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/05/17/singapore-vending-machine-dispenses-bentleys-ferraris-lamborghinis/
