This article seems to suggest that there's lots of small players competing over marginally profitable locations. There's also a negative externality which can lead to these people destroying their whole business: as people compete over machines that don't make much, they cut costs by not refilling as often and not maintaining the machines.

This means that the general level of trust in these machines goes down. After you lose your dollar a couple of times you stop using them. Aside from trusting official Coke or Pepsi machines, there's no brand loyalty (to the operator - a random name on a small sticker on the machine). So if your machines are well-stocked and in good working order, you won't do any better than anyone else. And after a while there are broken vending machines everywhere, which everyone ignores.

This suggests that the machines should use clearer branding, but it needs to be a brand that combines maker + operator.

>> This suggests that the machines should use clearer branding, but it needs to be a brand that combines maker + operator.

Interesting factoid. If you want to manufacture a machine and put large beverage company branding on it they have standards. Things like: it must bring a room temperature beverage down to xx degrees in yy minutes or less.

The issue there is the same issue that plagues sellers on Amazon or Ebay- brand loyalty is difficult to maintain when one operator often doesn't have the snack you want, or you can't find the operator in your area. Branding could help, but it's unlikely that most consumers will remember what operator their vending machine snack came from, just like I will never remember what 3rd party seller my Amazon product came from.

>it's unlikely that most consumers will remember what operator their vending machine snack came from

Isn't that still a branding issue?

Have a bright orange gorilla swinging by it's tail as the mascot. On both sides of the machine and on the front (though transparent enough to see the snacks without issue). "Wait, gorillas don't have tails?" you question. Exactly, that's the brand name: Gorillas Don't have Tails.

We have a nationwide vending machine brand, with 900 employees for 27'000 machines and full or partial service options.

I think branding is important but also just the "feel" of the machine. Personally I trust the machines with newer looking componenets, fresher looking snacks that with features like a CC reader than I would an older crusty machine. Either way, agree trust is huge.

I bet this would make a great game! I already have a title: 'Vending machine magnate'.

In any case, congrats to these entrepreneurs, and thanks for sharing.

Are there white papers / briefs out there that have hard information on what quantifies a good location vs not?

You need the locations near each other, or time is wasted driving around. There's economy of scale here. The soft-drink people are already there. That doesn't leave much room for the rest of the market.