III. Industry Analysis
The Vending Machine industry has experienced growth over the past few years. The growth in the healthy eating index is a driving factor of change for the industry. When the healthy eating index increases, consumers eat less junk food, which industry operators have conventionally sold. This has caused the industry to pivot to selling more health conscious foods, expanding their offerings to include baked, organic and no-sugar-added products in their machines, in addition to traditional chips, soda and candy items, to appeal to a wider variety of consumers.
Moving forward, more vending machines will likely include touch screens, remote monitoring systems and point-of-sale systems. However, the level of technology advancement and acceptance are still relatively low in this industry, providing massive room for technology growth in the future. Technology advancements will likely help companies enhance their customer experience, improve operational efficiencies and expand their customer bases by being able to expand product portfolios.
Moreover, there have been an increasing number of industry operators that cooperate with brands to customize vending machines for marketing purposes. Vending machines enable products to sell in more locations with lower costs. Therefore, some brands and retailers may take advantage of the ubiquitous nature of vending machines to meet their business goals, as well as extend brand awareness by adding distribution channels.
As external competition is anticipated to intensify. Industry operators are likely to innovate products to expand their customer bases and improve operational efficiency. Some operators may develop a market niche to provide customized vending machines and services for meeting clients’ business goals.
