Vending machines are a staple to the modern, urban life. They’re one of the most celebrated and used innovations, making our daily lives better and easier. You’ll see them in every corner of the street, inside the office building, or in school campuses.
The prevalence of vending machines only means one thing – people love it. From candy, soda to coffee vending machines and everything in between, you are spoiled for choice. While there are unique and creative products inside different vending machines across the globe, technological advancements and changes in consumer behavior have significantly influenced trends in the vending machine industry.
Wondering what these unique trends are? How do they shape the vending machine industry? Read on to find out.
Trend #1: The Use of IoT Technology
Sure, you love surfing the internet as much as you love buying your snacks on a vending machine. That’s why this new trend brings a combination of both.
IoT Technology, also known as the Internet of Things, is a system of interrelated computing devices, mechanical, digital machines and objects. This system allows connectivity between multiple devices.
Interestingly, IoT opens unique opportunities for business to improve their operations. Through IoT technology, vending machine businesses have managed to streamline their systems as it allows them to keep track of products and assess the prime locations of machines. When the best vending machines are low in stock, companies are alerted about it immediately. This drastically reduces operating expenses and improves customer service.
Some vending machines also integrate the IoT technology with plug-and-play smart button devices, allowing customers to instantly contact facility management.
With IoT, vending machine business owners can reap a lot of benefits, including:
Trend #2: The Shift to Cashless Payments
Over the years, we see how payment transactions changed and evolved, from trading to bill currency, and now, cashless payments.
Cashless payments are the future. They streamline transactions and keep records of your expenses. However, who would have thought of cashless payments for the best vending machines? Well, one of the out-of-the-box vending machine trends is cashless payment. No bills for your drink? No coins for a quick snack? Then no problem, you can swipe your card to pay for your favourite vending machine products.
With cashless payments, businesses can keep up with every consumer’s payment preferences. This payment method provides a quick and simple solution that opens unique opportunities for vending machine businesses.
The rise of this trend not only offers convenience, but it also improves logistical concerns. Handling cash in vending machines is a costly and time-consuming process. It is also highly linked to vandalism and theft.
When this trend continues, the question for the vending machine industry is: how can the vending technology develop further to align with the ever-changing consumer behaviour?
Trend #3: More Choices and Variety of Products Offered
Are you shocked by the sight of live crabs inside of vending machines? How about hot and freshly cooked fries? Gone are the days when you could only choose between chips or drinks. Vending machines business owners are now offering delightful products to a wider audience.
Years ago, snacking is linked to having a quick munch of chips paired with a sugary drink. Today, the nature of snacking has evolved. More and more consumers are particularly becoming health conscious. They seek for better snack alternatives to maintain a healthy and proper diet.
In a study conducted by The Vending People, among the most popular drinks were the zero-sugar sodas. This means that more people choose healthier alternatives. As a result, more vending machine business owners have provided a variety of food choices, especially healthier options.
Other than the clamour for healthier options, more consumers want to enjoy convenient cooked meal options in self-service machines. Some of the best vending machines that dispense restaurant-tier meals offer hot pizza, caviars, escargots, and fresh salads.
With such new and refreshing ideas hitting the vending industry, it will be exciting to see what other innovations will be introduced in the years to come to address the varying consumer’s choices.
Trend #4: The Movement of Sustainable and Green Revolution
Did you know that the world produces over 381 million tonnes of plastic every year? Half of the volume of trash produced yearly is single-use plastic. It’s not surprising that the concern over the environmental impact of single-use plastics has skyrocketed in recent years.
Many environmental groups are now rallying against the use of single-use plastics. That is why the government and different private sectors are taking extra steps to reduce this number by creating strict policies and introducing new alternatives.
To address the issue of single-use plastics in vending machines, many city councils introduce reverse vending machines. Packaging suppliers also launched vending cup recycling initiatives to minimise the plastics and waste contributed by vending machines.
All these initiatives show that the vending industry is supporting a circular economy and providing a better way for consumers to help reduce plastic waste.
Trend #5: The Result of the Coronavirus Pandemic
As we started the new year, we looked forward to days full of great adventures and happy moments shared with family and friends. None of us predicted that a pandemic would happen and affect us for over half the year.
The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has plagued different industries across the globe, including the retail and vending industries. Most vending operators reported losses of up to 90%, due to most employees working from home.
This unprecedented incident comes as a challenge for vending machine operators, but the real challenge comes after. This global crisis poses a question to many: how should vending machine operators become resilient and adapt to these changes?
Adapting to the Best Vending Machines Trends with TCN Vending Australia
Several major trends drive the success of vending machines. With all these innovations, new business opportunities push the boundaries of vending machine technologies for development.
Want to know more about the vending machine business? You’ve come to the right place. At TCN Vending Australia, we take pride in being the industry’s leader, shaping the future of the vending machine businesses. For more details and enquiries, don’t hesitate to call us at 1800 959 910 or email us at enquiries@tcnvending.com.au.
