help with snack vending

hi
im new to this , i have brought 5 snack dispensers (9 tier ones) , i want help sitng them and looking to purchase a snack vending franchise ,

 

[jimmysheffield]

did you say you have five towers sited by tubz , what kind of sites are they and do they do much?.

 

[Vending Siting Services]

Hello Cowgirl

Where did you buy your snack units from?

In vending, it is vitally important to ensure the supplier can offer you a siting service otherwise you can be left with machines unsited collecting dust in your garage!

Please refer to my "whistleblowing" section on my website to give you a few tips before parting with any further monies.

Please call me if you wish as I will be able to give you a few pointers to help you site your units.

Looking forward to hearing from you soon.

Regards.

Barbara Fellowes

 

[jimmysheffield]

Hello Cowgirl

Where did you buy your snack units from?

In vending, it is vitally important to ensure the supplier can offer you a siting service otherwise you can be left with machines unsited collecting dust in your garage!

Please refer to my "whistleblowing" section on my website to give you a few tips before parting with any further monies.

Please call me if you wish as I will be able to give you a few pointers to help you site your units.

Looking forward to hearing from you soon.

Regards.

Barbara Fellowes

Barbara yourself and your website are very helpfull , the problem is it seems very hard to talk to or even find existing franchisees of companies like yours .
you will agree that it is always best to talk to these people befor taking the plunge . In my view your company and tubz seem to stand out in the crowd and you especially give people an honest outlook on tower machine vending but it all seems such a minefield to walk through.

 

[Vending Siting Services]

Hello Jimmy

If you want to give me a call I can put you in touch with a couple of our Franchisees. We have over 100 franchisees all over the country with about 4 new ones coming on board each week. We attract serious business people wanting to build a sound and profitable vending business. We have many operators reaching high numbers 500+ vendors and a couple reaching their first 1,000.

Please don't compare ourselves with tubz, they have only been around for a year or so in the franchising industry, prior to that they were merely wholesalers, whereas we have been in franchising for 17 years with a wealth of experience and knowledge. Our main business is not franchising, but our own vending machines which my husband and I operate -now over 6,000 vendors and growing to 7,000. So you could say, we are just another operator wanting to share our experience.

Our aim is to educate and inform those contemplating coming into the vending industry and we quote realistic returns of what these machines can achieve after the honeymoon periods have settled down.

Whatever you hear from other vending companies, the truth is these machines average £40 gross sales PER MONTH after the initial honeymoon period settles down. Then we encourage you to re-site your bottom 10% to keep sales up.

Looking forward to chatting with you soon.

Regards.

Barbara Fellowes

 

Hi cowgirl

I think you're entering a real minefield. I came close to ploughing a lot of money into a snack vending franchise last year, and of the two that I considered, one has now ceased trading while the other has a host of disgruntled franchisees. There is very little hope of recovering your money under these circumstances.

Buying your own machines seems sensible, but you have to consider where you can source your stock from. I suspect that many of these machines are set up so that only that company's own products will fit, so if you don't deal with them, you're left high and dry.

I'd still be interested in investing in such a business myself, but any company that requires a big chunk of cash up front is worth avoiding!

 

[Vending Siting Services]

Hi cowgirl

...... but any company that requires a big chunk of cash up front is worth avoiding!

Good advice Fortune Seeker.

Many of the franchising companies "demand" an upfront deposit - WHY?? - are they afraid that you might change your mind, or do they need YOUR money to fund THEIR business?

I have many people contact me who have been very disgruntled who have paid their deposits to other vending companies and they have been waiting weeks and sometimes months before they even receive their vending machines - some have changed their minds and want their money back and it has been very difficult for them to get it back. Only a week ago a very unhappy chap from Northern Ireland telephoned me and had in total over £5,000 taken from his credit card LAST YEAR and still has not received a thing ... that company has now gone into liquidation.

Goods/services should only be paid for on collection/dispatch/at the time of starting your convassing and NOT before. If you are buying into a franchise and the company is not capitalised then these are the sorts of "tricks" they use to keep them afloat.

Regards.

Barbara

 

[Boris]

hi
im new to this , i have brought 5 snack dispensers (9 tier ones) , i want help sitng them and looking to purchase a snack vending franchise ,

H

if ou are new to all of this i would strongly suggest that you go and do some of your own research, why not go and do some 'cold calling'' to see how easy it is to find the sites, that way ou cabn the buy the machinesto order, i went down that route and now have about 50 out there, have a look on ebay you can get a bargin on there you will pay about £40 to £50 per machine,

hae tried to pm yu but i am unable to as you havnt posted enough on hr yet, dont rush in.

pm me if you would like to know anything else

 

[Boris]

contact me [email protected] and i will tell you what you need to know, i am NOT a supplier just an operator so you will get the truth.

 

[truthaboutukvending]

Hi cowgirl
I agree with Boris contact a operator not a supplier for a un-biased view and assistance.
truthaboutukvending.com

 

[truthaboutukvending]

Hi cowgirl

I think you're entering a real minefield. I came close to ploughing a lot of money into a snack vending franchise last year, and of the two that I considered, one has now ceased trading while the other has a host of disgruntled franchisees. There is very little hope of recovering your money under these circumstances.

Buying your own machines seems sensible, but you have to consider where you can source your stock from. I suspect that many of these machines are set up so that only that company's own products will fit, so if you don't deal with them, you're left high and dry.

I'd still be interested in investing in such a business myself, but any company that requires a big chunk of cash up front is worth avoiding!

You were lucky, most people plough their life savings into a vending franchise as a guaranteed income and regret all.
Speak to operators not suppliers and you do not need a large investment to start your own vending business.

truthaboutukvending.com

 

[swans]

hi can you give me some pointers i havent much capital.i want to buy vending machines and fill with my own stock,any idea were i can buy single machnes from and good quaility stock,thanks very much phil swansea

 

[venderbase]

hi can you give me some pointers i havent much capital.i want to buy vending machines and fill with my own stock,any idea were i can buy single machnes from and good quaility stock,thanks very much phil swansea

As already mentioned, this can be very tricky to do alone.
The hardest part is finding sites to have one of your vendors. You are much better joining a franchise that can also site your machines for you.

If you want to try doing it yourself, why not just buy a machine off ebay and try siting it. If you get a Sandral/Salyson/Snack-A-Can style tower, you can buy stock from Barbara at The Vending Revolution.

Once you've tried siting, if you find its harder than you think, then chat to Barbara about joining The Vending Revolution. I am an operator within their franchise and am so glad I didn't stumble across one of the other vending companies first!!

Good Luck

Darren

 

[truthaboutukvending]

hi can you give me some pointers i haven't much capital.i want to buy vending machines and fill with my own stock,any idea were i can buy single machines from and good quality stock,thanks very much phil swansea

Hi Swans
I was in the same position as you, and I did not need to join a franchise and spend a small fortune. I recommend that you get some unbiased advice off someone that is not involved with any franchise.
I bought my first machine from a business auction also I have purchased off ebay in the past just be careful when buying off ebay that you are not buying someone else's junk! A big source of machines for me ( snack and snack and can) was from actual local based vending operators who were buying new machines and therefore selling some of their older stock.
Don't let anyone convince you that you need mega-bucks machines and contract vehicles etc etc you don't you can start with a couple of hundred quid and buy your stock from Costco ( cans of pop and crisp) ....though for me the local market was better for me great deals on chocolate bars.

truthaboutukvending.com

 

[venderbase]

Please dont think I was trying to suggest you MUST use a franchise, which is why I suggested buying and siting machines yourself first.
As the site is the most important part of vending, I know I wouldn't have even got off the starting block with my business as I am not very good at sales not to mention cold calling sales!

After seeing my business expand, my brother once decided to buy a couple of lollipop vending machines. He had these sat in his house for months before selling them on ebay for half the price he paid. He just couldn't get them sited!

The beauty of a franchise is their siting service, but by all means go and have a go yourself and dont hesitate to ask for advice.

Darren

 

[truthaboutukvending]

Please dont think I was trying to suggest you MUST use a franchise, which is why I suggested buying and siting machines yourself first.
As the site is the most important part of vending, I know I wouldn't have even got off the starting block with my business as I am not very good at sales not to mention cold calling sales!

After seeing my business expand, my brother once decided to buy a couple of lollipop vending machines. He had these sat in his house for months before selling them on ebay for half the price he paid. He just couldn't get them sited!

The beauty of a franchise is their siting service, but by all means go and have a go yourself and dont hesitate to ask for advice.

Darren

Hi Darren

Sorry my comments were not aimed at your comments....I just like people to be very 'aware' about a high percentage of franchise's.

 

[venderbase]

No worries

 

[Vending Siting Services]

Hi Swans
I was in the same position as you, and I did not need to join a franchise and spend a small fortune. I recommend that you get some unbiased advice off someone that is not involved with any franchise.
I bought my first machine from a business auction also I have purchased off ebay in the past just be careful when buying off ebay that you are not buying someone else's junk! A big source of machines for me ( snack and snack and can) was from actual local based vending operators who were buying new machines and therefore selling some of their older stock.
Don't let anyone convince you that you need mega-bucks machines and contract vehicles etc etc you don't you can start with a couple of hundred quid and buy your stock from Costco ( cans of pop and crisp) ....though for me the local market was better for me great deals on chocolate bars.

Hi TAV

Good advice that I am sure a few individuals will be able to take heed of and build themselves a nice vending round without the need for professional support.

I would like to take one aspect of what you say which has already been highlighted by Venderbase which is vending is not about the equipment, even the product is secondary, what vending is really all about is the SITE!

If there are people out there like yourself TAV, who are skillfull sales people and negotiators and who have the confidence and background to successfully cold call then I fully endorse everything you say and even recommend it. Unfortunately getting sites for the vast majority of individuals even those who have been in business previously is a lot easier said than achieved. The way vending really works is that getting sites is not only incredibly difficult for most, but the only other question which has not been covered which is vital to your profitability and future ability to grow your business is the site commission question.

Site commission is probably the most contraversial and damaging element of the vending industry. The present entry level commission is somewhere between 20-25% of your gross revenue, unfortunately with human nature being what it is and the high volume of desperate operators willing to give anything to gain a site or even poach one from an existing operator has meant that commission levels in recent times have soured. It is now not uncommon to be forced to pay anything up to 40% of your gorss revenue to win a site, needless to say at this level of commission you are just turning money over and barely covering your costs. Certainly there is no profit in the arrangement.

For those that do not have the aforementioned skills and confidence and who wish to have a businesss that is highly profitable enabling them to grow their business going to a professional company who can acquire fully qualified sites with a commission level that makes sense such as 5%, the option of working with a franchisor makes strong commercial sense and contrary to how the industry WAS a couple of years ago the rip off companies that were once charging an extortionate £1,000 for a simple vending machine and charging you monthly management fees are thankfully history.

Regards.

Barbara Fellowes

 

[swans]

well thanks for all the advice from you all,as a bookman i have over 700 calls were i leave my books,so i think i will try to site a few machines myself through my book contacts and start with a couple of machines from ebay,and stock from vr if thats ok? i also have barbaras number so thats good to have,if i like it i will go to vr,thanks everyone again

 

[Vending Siting Services]

Hi Swans

Excellent! I didn't twig that you already go into sites with your books. You have an excellent platform to go in on. Don't mention any commission payments, that way you will get even more profit!

Do you give your sites a commission for the book sales you do on site?

Regards.

Barbara

 

[swans]

yes they get 10% for orders over £30 usually in the form of a free gift,but many dont ask for anything i just keep my best calls happy,its a great job but doing it on my own compeating with the big companys is so hard,so im going to test the water with vending

 

[Vending Siting Services]

Hi Swans

Let me know how you get on and if you need any help, just email me or telephone me.

Regards.

Barbara Fellowes