starting a charity mint box route?????????????

starting a charity mint box route?????????????

well i have been doing some research on starting a small mint box vending route and that's how i found this great forum! i want to start kinda small to test the waters and see if it will be worth my time and effort. #1 the actual mint box:found a nice clear plastic box with 2 compartments,1for the mints and 1 for the coins/money which is lockable.i found this mint box by Sheridan Systems It will hold up to 125 York Patties! Price: $18.75 Click image for larger version. Name: IMG_0597_PRODUCT.jpg Views: 0 Size: 42.5 KB ID: 89 These acrylic plastic honor boxes are the cream of the crop. Use them for your best locations and to get the best locations. They come with a secure locking attached coin box with keys. You can be proud to walk into any major location with this deluxe display. * Dimensions: 10"D X 5"W X 10"H #2 the mints: york peppermint patties are great but the cost per mint is too high! pearsons or palmers seems to be the best options. i think i will go with which ever one i can get the best deal/price on. the best price i found so far online was with amazon,well actually a vendor on amazon,240 ind. wrapped patties for $22.97 including s/h, which makes my cost per patty $.095! #3 getting the mint boxes located:may try this myself to keep costs down,but may have to hire and expert to place them in good locations where i can earn the most profit! not sure what the going rate is for mint box placement is maybe $10-$20? this part of the biz i have not researched much yet. #4 shrinkage:i have read on this forum under the multi item big cardboard honor boxes a good rate is <20% i am hoping for <10% since they are 25 cents and not a dollar but maybe i am totally wrong? i would love in advice,suggestions,info,etc. on my 1st attempt at a vending route and the vending biz! also does anyone have any experience with this model mint box? what should i expect to average per month with 10 boxes in average locations? thanks, you can find quality acrylic boes shone above at: sourceone.otg

Locating Tips for Bulk Vendors

Locating Tips for Bulk Vendors Here is an interesting article speaking about Locating Tips: We have all heard in real estate that, "location, location, location" is the most important thing in selling a house. For bulk vending, the location you put your machine is equally important to your business cash flow. Being able to locate a machine yourself is one of the greatest assets you can personally develop in this business. Period! Here are 15 of my favorite places to put gumball, candy, and/or toy vending machines: 1. Restaurants 2. Repair shops 3. Clinics (of all kinds) 4. Hair salons 5. Farm supply stores 6. Oil change and lube stores 7. Auto parts supply stores 8. Trucking companies 9. Car washes 10. Car dealerships 11. Salvage yards 12. Hardware stores 13. Tanning salons 14. Day cares 15. Lumber companies Keep in mind that a good location for your machine does not always mean a place with lots of traffic. High traffic areas give you a higher probability of getting sales. The problem you run into with high traffic areas (like many of the ones above) is higher competition from other vending operators which bring down your sales. In my opinion, one of the things which decreases the value of a location the most is high competition. Therefore, the list above does not necessarily contain the best places in every given city. If your machine is one of six or eight others on site, you may only get average or below average results from the location. This may be good enough to retain the account, but keep in mind the saying, "there's more fish in the pond." I love to go to places where other vendors don't go. This means other cities as well as other types of accounts. Don't be afraid to experiment with non-traditional places to put your machines provided the location seems safe for the machine. It only takes one employee to support a bulk vending machine! I have accounts where one person spends twenty dollars a month. It's your job to find that "one person" where no other competitor has thought to put a vending machine. A good rule of thumb I have found in securing locations for machines is that for every ten machines: * Six machines will produce "average" results and will be good * "bread-and-butter" accounts * Two machines will have poor results and will have to be relocated * Two machines will have excellent results and will motivate you to find even more accounts! After locating over 100 machines in the last year, these numbers above have held up accurately. These numbers have also stayed consistent over the five-year period I have been involved in this business. In many ways, vending is a numbers game. Be encouraged and motivated in your efforts to secure new locations. You next account may be that incredible account that puts $100 in your pocket every time you collect! this great article and other vending related articles can be found @ http://bulkvending.blogspot.com/

Making Money from Charity Boxes

Making Money from Charity Boxes Making Money from Charity Boxes Bulk Candy Vending Machines in most cases make the owner of the route money by signing up with a Charity Sticker Program and then the owner is responsible for buying the machines, candy and servicing of that machine. This is where some get misled into thinking it is a rip off when they hear that the owner of the route only pays $1.50 per machine. They don't realize that they are a business owner that has expenses just like any other business but does help the charity's. If someone helps the Charities by having 100 machines and donates $150 per month, this is a great steady income for the charity with no risk or overhead to them. It is money they would not have if not for the vending operators who are participating in the program. I have been reading about honor boxes which are very similar to bulk candy vending machine yet cheaper. If interested in buying honor boxes you can click on this link to get an idea of pricing from CoolPlastic.com. These honor charity boxes work the same and I do see them all over in grocery stores, hardware stores and thought I would mention the concept to you as a way to generate income just like most do with bulk candy vending machines. I guess the question here is if you are collecting for a charity and their agreement with you is to pay $1.50 per month per location then is it right for someone else to call it a rip off who doesn't understand the concept? Most do not realize wether it is an honor box or a bulk candy vending machine these charity vending programs and contracts exist and do raise money for the charities. More than they would ever get if they did not exist. The owners and operators of these vending box or bulk vending routes have expenses for equipment, supplies, driving around servicing and locating. I am attaching an article below that I thought was very interesting. Give me your comments on the article and your opinions since most of you are in the industry or are thinking about entering. Do you think Bulk Vending Machines or a better manner of collecting for the Charity sticker programs or do you think the Honor Boxes do mislead? This has always been a tough topic and debatable especially when you are trying to get a location for the charity vending program and someone point blank asks if all the money is donated to the charity. Let me know how you like this posting and what you thought of this article written by WCCO TV I TEAM. ARTICLE BELOW Written by WCCO TV It takes just a second to drop a dime into a charity box and you think you are making a difference. The WCCO-TV I-TEAM found that's not always the case. In some cases, hardly any money is going to charity, no matter how much is collected. Last December, Linda Ronan made headlines in the Twin Cities because of how she was making money. Banking on the generous hearts of holiday shoppers, as she placed boxes at a handful of stores and kept the proceeds. Ronan told WCCO-TV she bought the boxes as a business venture and that she has done nothing wrong. She might be right. Prosecutors still have not decided if she should be charged with a crime. The I-TEAM found out Ronan was participating in a vending sticker program that lets people use a charity's good name to raise money. Money that by law does not need to go to the charity. "You risk losing your good money," said Solicitor General Lori Swanson. "So the bigger questions is, it's legal, but is it misleading?" WCCO-TV's Terri Gruca asked Swanson. "Yes, correct," Swanson replied. "If people did give to a charity, if they feel like the charity or the owner of the box mislead them, then we would encourage them to file complaints with our office." To find out how much money a charity box brings in, the I-TEAM set up an experiment, placing charity boxes around the Twin Cities. The I-TEAM signed up for a sticker program with the Vanished Children's Alliance, a legitimate charity, that helps find missing kids. Based on the agreement with VCA, we could not represent ourselves as fundraisers. Placing the boxes across the metro area was easy. Fifteen boxes were left out for 30 days in ice cream shops, smoke shops, restaurants and liquor stores. "This morning, it's to help find missing children," said donor Gina Breedlove when asked where she thought her money was going. The fine print on the sticker said, "All proceeds go to the unit owner." That means the person placing the box gets the cash. "I never read the fine print on that," said Breedlove. The sticker also said, "The owner of this unit makes a guaranteed monthly royalty payment to the Vanished Children's Alliance." It does not say what the fee is. In the boxes, the I-TEAM collected pennies, dimes, dollars and even a $5 bill. After one month, the total collected was $120.79. All the I-TEAM was required to give to the charity was $22.50, or $1.50 per box. "We want as much disclosure to the public as possible," said Georgia Hilgeman Hammond, who started up the Vanished Children's Alliance. Hammond started the alliance in San Jose, Calif. after her own daughter disappeared. Her daughter was eventually found, but she wanted to help other kids. She said the charity's sticker program is one way to help and believes the stickers themselves say enough. "It's legal, but is it deceptive?" Gruca asked Hammond. "I don't think it's deceptive and anyone that has additional questions can pick up the phone and call us," Hammond replied. "You're doing a box for charity and the reality is the charity is yourself," said Mike Farnham. Farnham took the I-TEAM's box out of his liquor store when he realized the Vanished Children's Alliance did not have to get all the cash. The VCA said it is not all about the money. "We're getting publicity for this particular child, exposure for this child and exposure to the agency so people can know of a resource," Hammond said. The VCA fears people will not give if they find out the charity only requires to give $1.50 a month. "There probably are people making money and you know, it's not necessarily bad because hopefully, it's a win-win situation," Hammond said. The I-TEAM found people all over the Twin Cities using charities to make money. Chris Bratvold uses National Children's Cancer Society stickers on her vending machines. She brings in about $200 a month. "They told me this can be some very good income on the side," Bratvold said. Diliana Thilomy uses stickers from Child Search on her candy-filled boxes. Both women said they got involved in this business to raise awareness for good causes and to make money. "I needed help and they needed help," Thilomy said. "I thought this was a pretty good thing to do." The Vanished Children's Alliance said people should only use its stickers on boxes where people get something for their money. The Alliance said just using the term honor box in their contract is enough to let people know they can't just put out boxes to collect donations. However, the charity never asked the I-TEAM if it was selling anything when signing up. The Ronald McDonald House is one of the few charities that does not let people make money off its name. "That money is very significant to us," said Meg Katzman, Executive Director of the Ronald McDonald House in the Twin Cities. The local and national charities get 100 percent of the money collected in McDonald's charity canisters. "For a charity to allow someone to put a box out and only receive a minimum of $1.50, when you have the potential to raise so much more money, I have an ethical problem with that," Katzman said. The Vanished Children's Alliance said it makes $200,000 a year from its sticker program. "I think about the good that money does for these children and these families and for educating the public," Hammond said. The I-TEAM's earning show the VCA is missing out on a lot more. The I-TEAM made five times what it was required to donate and gave it all to the charity. If the VCA took in five times the $200,000 it typically earns in a year, it could have $1 million. Knowing that, the VCA still doesn't plan to charge more than $1.50 a month. "As a matter of fact, a lot of people think we ask too much," Hammond said. In the 1980s, Minnesota had a law requiring charities to give 70 percent of what they collected to their cause. The Supreme Court ruled that law unconstitutional so now you have to do your own homework. The best way to check up on a charity is to call the charity or look at the charity's legal papers at the Attorney General's Office. Even if a charity does not participate in a sticker program, it may use an outside agency to collect charity box profits. Most agencies get 30 percent of the money collected. (WCCO) OK, so that is the end of the article. What did you think? What is your opinion? Do you think most operators are giving to these charities once they collect the money from the honor boxes. If they are do you think it is acceptable? We like to Educate on the Bulk Vending Blog and discuss issues relating to this industry. We hope you find the blog helpful and educational for new or existing members of the bulk candy vending industry. Have a great Sunday and upcoming week. Steve this and other great vending articles can be found @ : http://bulkvending.blogspot.com

Vending Toy Machines-How to Start to Sell Toys in Your Machines

Vending Toy Machines-How to Start to Sell Toys in Your Machines Vending toy machines are extremely popular with the kids. Choose the right product, and they will even be popular with teens especially with the right kind of jewlery. Here are some top ideas and strategies to add vending toy machines to your existing bulk vending business: 1- Choose the right bulk vending machine to sell vending toys. You don't want to lose money from machines which do not work. 2- Choose good toys to sell in your machines. A good toy is one that sells well and one which has a good profit margin for you as a vending operator. 3- Vending toy machines must be regularly checked. Certain toys sell out quickly especially when you try a new selection. Empty machines will cause you to lose accounts. 4- Decide if you will sell 1", 2", or both sizes of toys. 2" toys are more expensive and take more room for inventory but can also do very well for you. 5- Decide if you will use vending toy machines configured in toy racks or in simple double or triple headed configurations. Sometimes you can do well without having to buy toy rack setups. You can start without the racks and increase your business into toy racks later. 6- Check with bulk vending toy suppliers for what is selling well for other operators!!! This is an important point. 7- Don't overlook rubber bouncy balls in your vending toy machines. These are a good size part of my business. Here are some of the Vending Machine toys I have successfully sold in the past: * Sticky toys * Flat Vending Tattoos * Flat Vending Stickers * Tattoos in 1" toy capsules * Bouncy Balls or Super hi bounce balls * Nickelodian Figurines * Spongebob Figures * Metal Rings * Mini Crosses * Fuzzy Face Mustaches in both 1" and 2" toy capsules * Glo Sticks * Glo Crosses * Mini Aliens * Super balls - 2" (49mm) Rubber balls * Treasure Chest toy capsule mixture * Jumbo Sticky Hands Vending Toy machines can be challenging if you order too much product that doesn't sell. Then you're stuck with bad product. If you get stuck with bad product, mix it with other products and sell it as a general mix. Check our website for more articles in the future. Good luck selling products in your Vending toy machines! this and many other fine vending related articles can be found @ http://vendingarticles.net

* How to Find Locations for Vending Machines

How to Start a Vending Service Company * How to Create a Vending Machine * How to Find Locations for Vending Machines How to Locate Services for Vending Machines How to Locate Services for Vending Machines thumbnail How to Locate Services for Vending Machines There are many types of vending machines out there, including large commercial units, mechanical snack and drink machines and even bulk vending units. Anyone who owns vending machines has used a vending machine service person at one time or another. Companies or individuals who service vending machines usually fall into one of the following categories: Locator, repair & maintenance, and movers. Following are some tips on locating someone to service your vending machines. Other People Are Reading * How to Start a Vending Service Company * How to Create a Vending Machine Things You'll Need * Vending machines * Internet access Show More Instructions 1. * 1 Search the Internet for vending machine locators in your area if you have just purchased your machines. Check their credentials online and call several of them. Ask the locator about their method of locating machines. Find out how much they charge. Take notes and select one that meets your needs and budget. Meet with the locator in person. Check their credentials. Make sure they guarantee in writing that they will relocate any machines that are unprofitable. * 2 Look in the phone book for vending machine locators or equipment and supply companies. Call these companies and ask them if they locate your type of machine. Meet with them and discuss your locating needs. * * 3 Search the Internet and phone book for vending repair personnel, vending service or vending equipment and supply if you have a coin, mechanical or electronic malfunction. Check their credentials online or by phone and select the one that meets your needs and budget. Provide them with the location of the machine that needs repairing and set a time to meet them there. * 4 Contact movers or vending machine locators online or by phone if you need to move your machine to another location. Check around the neighborhood for college students who need to make extra money. Select the service provider that best meets your budget and needs. Tips & Warnings * Locating companies will usually not guarantee their locations beyond a certain time period. Thus, it will be up to you to decide on the best option. Consider that locators have special moving equipment for the large commercial machines. You can probably get help from a friend or family member if you own smaller mechanical or bulk machines. * Never hire a locator from out of town to locate your machines, unless you meet with them first. Do not seek advice from a vending machine distributor that you find out of a business opportunity magazine. There are a lot of fly-by-night operators in the vending industry. They will not hesitate to take your money and provide shoddy service. Read more: How to Locate Services for Vending Machines | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/how_5948373_locate-services-vending-machines.html#ixzz20TtztmHw

Whether it is a mall, office premises or train stations, vending machines have become ubiquitous. It has become an integral part of the modern-day life. Vending machine business is one of the fastest growing business today. This business offers extra income with low initial investment and is a 100% cash-only business. If you are thinking of starting a vending machine business, all you need is a vending machine, along with the different products like soft drinks, toys, gum ball, etc. But like all good things, there are pros and cons to this business also. Let's have a look at them. Advantages and Disadvantages of Vending Machine Business Owning your business is the best reward you can give yourself, but it is wise to investigate the pros and cons, before starting the business. As far as the vending machine business is concerned, the pros and cons are listed as under. Pros of Vending Machine Business: The vending machine business is a great way to earn profit within a few months of starting the business, and if owned solely by you, you can also enjoy the full share of the profits. The advantages of this business are: 1. Be your own boss: You can be your own boss. It is you who will determine the business plan, and decide which vending machine to buy, among the different available options like soft drink dispenser, toy dispenser, gum ball dispenser, etc. 2. Low initial investment: The investment is small unless you are going in for bigger vending machines. 3. Less time and efforts: Buying the right vending machine and setting it at the correct location does not take much of your time or efforts, especially if you have connections with local businesses and stores. 4. Flexible working hours: You can very well manage your full-time job and personal life with this business. 5. Less stress: Once you set up your vending machine and start generating revenue, then the only thing you have to look after is the timely maintenance of the machine. 6. Unbound success: This business has an infinite growth rate. There really is no limit to your success. 7. Little experience needed: One of the biggest advantages of setting up this business, is that no previous business experience is required to start this business. One only requires the working knowledge of how to operate a vending machine. To make your business profitable, choose a product that is in demand. Some popular products are soft drink, gum ball, chips, toys, etc. Being a total cash flow business, the need of a accounts record is limited to ensure that goods are not being filched. Also, you do not need a store front to store the stock, you can easily keep them in your garage. You can update your stock on a weekly basis. Cons of Vending Machine Business: There are several issues that need to be dealt with if you are running your own vending machine business. It is essential to understand the nature of problems that you may face. 1. Right place: Placing the vending machine at the right location is the key factor to ensure that your business is profitable. Suppose, you decide to buy a toy dispensing vending machine and place it outside a pub. On the other hand, your competitor also buys a toy dispensing vending machine and places it outside a children park. In this case, your competitor would definitely earn more than you. Your competitors' machine will sell the entire stock even before you manage to sell one toy, because your machine is not at the right location. Location plays an important role in the success of this business. 2. Increasing competition: The fact that there is a very low initial investment needed in order to start a vending machine business is a major factor which is responsible for increasing business competition. 3. Increased liabilities: Being a sole owner of the business, your responsibilities would increase. You will be responsible for the service of the vending machine on time. Initially you will have to maintain the stock and regularly service the vending machine. As you start getting revenue, you can hire people to help you. Maintaining fresh stock and regularly servicing the vending machine is necessary to make your business work. 4. Vending machine cost: Apart from the cost of vending machine, there are several other hidden cost factors like license fees, maintenance of the machine, insurance, and advertising cost. Therefore, it is advisable to start with the basic vending machines like gum ball dispensers, sticker (tattoo) vending machines, as they are cheaper as compared to the electronic vending machines that refrigerate drinks or warm snacks. Incorrect selection of the products and wrong location can cause you severe losses, thereby not generating the desired revenue from the business. Vending machines are not magical machines. It is a passive business, this machine works even when you are not there. But this does not translate into a reprieve from responsibilities on your side. Ensure that before starting vending machine business, you understand the pros and cons and think over the business properly.

Starting a Vending Machine Business A vending machine business is one of those few legitimate businesses that require you to put in very little time and effort, but still rake in huge profits. That being said, this venture does have its own positives and negatives which you need to take into consideration if you intend to start it on your own. Enlarge Image Feel like having a soft-drink while walking down the street. What do you do? Look out for a vending machine, insert a coin and out pops the soft-drink can. While you have got what you wanted, someone - who is perhaps holidaying somewhere, has made a profit out of it. You could have been this person making profit while being on a vacation, had this vending machine belonged to you. Right? If you are thinking on similar lines, here is a dummies guide to vending machine business which will help you get going. This business is a hundred percent cash-only business with a nominal initial investment (i.e. if you are not opting for those huge vending machines), and one that does not require previous selling experience of any sort. That you are your own boss is perhaps the best thing about the vending machines. You will be the one who decides on which vending machine to buy. You will be the one who decides as to where the vending machine will be placed. You will also get to decide what the vending machine will sell. And yes, you will be the one responsible for servicing your vending machine from time to time. Once you get going with your own business, you are the only person on whom the entire success (or the failure for that matter) of this business will depend on. Starting a Vending Machine Business It is better to start small, and climb the ladder of success gradually. Ideally, you should go in for just one or two vending machines. Select a good spot for the machine, and see how it performs for a month. This way you will get a feel of the routine involved in running the business. If things are not going the way you expected, you can make the changes - in pricing your goods, location, etc., as required. Once you are confident of the way things should be done so that you get a good enough income, you can go in for more machines. Decisive Factors in the Vending Machine Business It is highly unlikely that a vending machines business will ever go into loss, though that doesn't mean it will give you super-profits either. There are quite a few factors that will decide as to how much profits each of your vending machines will make for you. As in case of any other business, you will have to take these decisive factors into consideration when you decide to start this business. Let us assume that you have decided to start this business with a single machine that will sell cigarettes. You have a competitor who decides to start selling cigarettes through a vending machine like you. Both buy the same machine and sell the same brand of cigarettes. You place your cigarette vending machine outside a gymnasium or a sports complex, while your competitor places his machine outside a pub. But obviously, the competitor's machine will sell the entire stock of cigarettes even before your machine manages to sell a single pack. If both of you decide to remove the cigarettes and replace them with health energy drinks, your machine will finish its entire stock before your competitor's machine can even sell one drink. In both the cases, the machines were same, so were the contents, but the sales figures were totally different. Why was that so? There is a simple one-word answer to this, and your entire vending business will depend on this one word - Location Yes, location is the most important factor when it comes to vending machines. You should ideally place your vending machine where human traffic - foot-traffic in particular, is constant. A vending machine will get customers only when it is visible to the people, and people will see it only when it is placed strategically. If your vending machine is easily accessible, it will easily attract customers and help you make a decent profit from your venture. Yet another advantage of keeping your machine where there is a constant human flow is security, as doing so will rule out the chances of your machine being vandalized - a problem which is quite common when it comes to vending machines. If you place your machine in some shady area, your machine will not make much profits, and chances of it being vandalized will only increase. Good places to put vending machines include malls, busy street corners, movie theaters, inside or outside pubs and discos, inside the school premises or outside it,..... and so on - the list is virtually endless. Irrespective of where you intend to place the machine, mutual understanding with the owner of that place is a must. If you are lucky enough, you may get a place for your machine for free or for a nominal share of the profits. Whatever deal you strike, it is always better to have the understanding between you and the other party on paper, as doing so will rule out legal issues which may crop up if differences occur at any point in the future. Location will also depend on who your target customers are. As we said in the example given above, there is no point is placing a cigarette-dispensing vending machine outside a gymnasium. Instead, placing it inside or even outside the pub will be a better option. Before placing your vending machine on any street corner or outside a pub or any such place, you need to make sure that you check with your local authorities and find out what taxes and tax deductions are applicable for this business in your region. Today almost anything can be sold through a vending machine, including soft-drink cans, gum, hot coffee, cold coffee, cigarettes, even hot-dogs and pizzas. You need to trust only reputed vending machine manufacturers/dealers, and keep away from those who make tall claims. A little bit of research will always work in your favor. You can visit a few established vending machine operators in your area and find out from where they purchased their machines, and if they were experiencing any problems with them. This way you will be sure of buying your vending machine from a good source. As these machines come in a variety of shapes and sizes, researching will also help you select the one that is right for what you intend to sell. Take Notice After reading all of this it may seem that this business is real easy - buy a vending machine, place it at a strategically apt location, fill it up with what you intend to sell, and remove the money and refill the machine after regular intervals. Theoretically yes, it is incredibly simple. Practically speaking - yes and no - it can or cannot be so simple depending on how you would go about it. You need to understand that owning a vending machine is not some sort of magic formula to become rich as many advertisers will make you believe. Going through the advertisements on vending machines, you will come across several claims of average profits of over $50 per vending machine per day. Many people fall for this, dreaming of all the money they will make if they start with 10 machines. That however, is not actually the case. These false claims have prompted many people to start their vending machine business only to find out that they were not even able to recover the amount they invested in buying the vending machine until several months into the business. Avoid buying machines from manufacturers who make tall claims of earning big amounts from day one, because the fact is that is not possible. These people are out to cheat you, and the aggressive marketing that they resort to is only to cover up the fact that the quality of their machines is substandard and service poor. It is in your best interest to buy vending machines from a reputed manufacturer/dealer. It may initially cost you a bit more, but will be much more profitable in the long run. To sum up, you just need to be sensible when starting this business. You should not get carried away by false claims of people becoming rich overnight (or over the fortnight for that matter). If you get confused and can't decide on a certain issue, it's better to take advice from someone you trust. In order to make your vending machines business work, you will have to ensure: * that you place your machine at a strategically apt location. * that you crosscheck with the local authorities for the rules and regulations for starting vending machines business. * that the company from which you buy the machine has got a good reputation in the market. * that you insure your equipment. * that you always maintain a fresh stock. * that you opt for regular servicing of your machines. So when are you starting your own vending machine business. I may just be the one who feels like having a soft-drink whilst walking down the street, and yours could be the vending machine that I may end up coming across!