Vending machines are quick and convenient. To vend multiple types of products there are multiple vending machines.
There is a Water vending machine, Pizza vending machine, French-fries vending machine, fresh milk vending machine, soda vending machine, candy vending machine, coffee vending machine, tea vending machine, cash vending machine, ticket/token vending machine, beverage and of course snacks vending machine.
In India, the most common vending machines are cash vending machines which are Bank ATMs, something we use regularly. We also see fresh milk vending machines at Mother Dairy booths and ticket/token vending machines, and water vending machines at Metro/Railways stations among the most popular machines.
But for most standard products we use the Snacks vending machine, on which this blog would talk about. You can call it a mini supermarket and keep a variety of products or certain categories depending upon your audience.
This machine is generic in nature and can fit any product with standardized packaging ranging from FMCG like chips, chocolates, cookies, namkeens, healthy snacks, energy drinks, protein shakes, juices, coke, fresh food like rajma-chawal, idli-sambhar, poha, noodles, burger etc., OTC medicines to electronics like chargers, earphones, mobile phones and even books and footwears.
Top Selling Products In A Vending Machine In India
From Wendor’s own experience of demand of customers in certain locations, I would be explaining the type of products that sells most according location wise.
For a location like GYM, there will be mostly health-conscious people who would like to have healthy drinks, protein shakes, juices, low carb snacks, high-protein food, cut fruits, dry fruits, water bottle, hand towels, earphones, OTC medicines etc.
In office-spaces, we have seen a lot of time people turning to the vending machine for snacks and desserts. Keeping chocolates, biscuits, chips, healthy lunch ideas (rajma chawal or poha), cut fruits, cup noddles, coke, juices, OTC medicines, office stationery like pens, dairy, sticky notes, cigarettes etc would attract your customers more and more.
Society/Apartments in India are popular places for a vending machine, it is installed generally at the lift lobby and members buy their daily needs like bread, milk, cornflakes, pulses, wheat flour, oil, sanitary napkins,
In colleges/university the students buy grab-and-go products be it chips, chocolates, cuppa noodles, sandwiches, namkeens, coke, juices, gums, chargers, feminine hygiene products, earphones, stationaries to name a few.
If you are planning to install in any mall I would like to suggest to launch products of your brands. Recently we had a Sattu manufacturer who wanted to reach the masses through vending machines instead of opening up their own stores.
They installed a machine in a popular area of mall with beautiful branding on the vending machine and it got sold like hot cakes on the very first day. Vending machines helped them expand their number of locations all over the city while selling their other fast selling products like pickles, chips and homemade spices.
Vending machines are a great way of giving away samples of your new launch at target areas, while branding and expanding together.
One great way to increase sale is through ‘tasting seminars’. Launch testing seminar of your new products which would attract customers to taste and buy. They serve two main purposes- one it would be a great way to spread the word about your vending business which would build excitement and curiosity about your vending machine
And two-sample testing would give you direct feedback about the taste of your customers through which you could design your product mix accordingly. You can even partner with different vendors to offer free samples to see what works and what doesn’t
Keep in mind that to have maximum profits the margin on products is very important. The higher the margin the better it would be. When we talk about margins here we consider the cost price, selling price, percentage of damage (especially on fresh food).
You can be very creative in this part and keep products which your customers would want. Brainstorm your ideas and let us know in the comments
Sourcing products
After you have decided what product you would be keeping in your vending machine, it’s now time to decide the source of your products. It is always a good idea to obtain from wholesalers or manufacturers directly if possible. It gives you a higher percentage thus increasing your profits.
