New - Help Appreciated!

[vendingventure]

Hi,

I've been looking into starting up a vending business and figure this is a good place to get some insight and gather the information i need to put together a business plan. I'm thinking i will start with Towers before ultimately adding Vending machines once i have built up a strong core to the business with towers. I've read the websites of tubz vending and Hurleys and I've also had a look through this forum to try and gather as much information as possible.

I do have some questions which if answered would really help me out.

My initial thought is that i will buy a 10 tower bundle from tubz vending or Hurleys. I figure this will give me the basic training i will need, a starting relationship with a supplier and some new towers to get me started. I will then also purchase some second hand machines for a cheaper price. I think i will use a combination of both suppliers (tubz vending and Hurleys) as well as doing some self packing. This should allow me to maintain a supply line even if any issues arise with a supplier.

So firstly what i need to know is what level of being tied to the supplier do Hurleys and tubz vending expect for getting the basic franchise package? My assumption, having read the websites, is that i would still be free to use any suppliers i want. Is this correct?

Also i assume there is no geographical limitation on getting the package? i.e. they don't only sell one franchise per area

When contacting whichever supplier i decide to go with, should i inform them of the model i intend to use? They won't have an issue with me having a mixture of both companies and my own independent lines?

If anyone has any information on the terms of the franchise package of either company that would be really useful. If not i will soon be in touch with both to ask for this information anyway, i just thought id get any information i can here before making my initial contact.

Next i'm interested in the time it takes to deal with the machines (collecting money, re-stocking, fixing jams)? And if a machine jams how quickly do customers expect it to be dealt with? I will at first be running this part time until it is generating enough money for me to take it on as a full time business, which means i will have other time commitments that could stop me from being able to fix any issues with towers until the end of the day or the following day, will this be an issue?

Currently while working out my figures i am working on the assumption that i will be able to average out 40ppm takings on my towers (by re-siting any that don't hit my targets and carefully monitoring what is selling and what isn't and adapting the products i offer) while i have less than 100 towers at which point this may drop to around 25ppm for additional towers as time constraints and geographical saturation start to mean towers are left in less optimum positions. Are these realistic figures?

That should be enough to start with! I'm sure i'll have other questions that i'll ask but these should go a long way to helping me with my business plan and approach. Any other advice or helpful information you can think to add would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks for taking the time to read and thanks in advance for any responses!

[Ade]

hi see this topic answered recently
http://www.coinoperatedgroup.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=47&t=5556

[cliffxtc]

Your #1 priority:
Siting!
Don't settle for old men's pubs, beauty salons or garages..they're rubbish, kids not adults is where the money is at.

[vendingventure]

Your #1 priority:
Siting!
Don't settle for old men's pubs, beauty salons or garages..they're rubbish, kids not adults is where the money is at.

That's good to know. So kids should be the main target market? I have a few sites in mind that won't have many kids so maybe I need to re-think which locations are going to be good sites. Thanks for the reply!

[vendingventure]

hi see this topic answered recently
viewtopic.php?f=47&t=5556

Thanks for the response. I've already read that thread and been keeping an eye on the responses but think my questions are slightly more specific in the information I'm looking for.

In particular further info on the expectations of the companies when you buy a bundle from them and whether my forecast of 40ppm per machine, dropping to 25ppm per machine after 100 machines is a realistic target?

As opposed to just buying some towers I'm trying to put together a proper business plan including as much as I can prior to buying my first towers. This helps me to properly evaluate the opportunities in the market and what kind of targets I will need to reach to achieve my aims.

Cheers for taking the time to reply!

[Siting Services]

Hello Vendingventure and welcome to the forum

Whereabouts in the UK are you based?

Kind regards,

Barbara

[vendingventure]

Hello Vendingventure and welcome to the forum

Whereabouts in the UK are you based?

Kind regards,

Barbara

Hi Barbara,

Thanks, I was hoping you would respond!

I'm based in London.

[Siting Services]

Hello - sorry I don't know your name

Whereabouts in London?

Regards,

Barbara

[vendingventure]

Hello - sorry I don't know your name

Whereabouts in London?

Regards,

Barbara

That's ok I wouldn't expect you to! I've just noticed your input on this forum, seen your website and seen you talked about a lot when doing my research. I think you're probably one of the most knowledgable on the subject so really appreciate any input you have.

I'm in South East London.

[Siting Services]

Yes I am one of the oldies (not in mind though!). We are retired from the operational side of vending and I can't keep away so I offer a site finding service, consultancy and brokerage service to the industry.

South East London is an area that has been operated for many years and I have done a lot of work there for my customers over the years. If you were to start your vending business there, I would recommend 10 towers and go from there.

Feel free to get in touch or call me if you wanted a chat. I am generally busy at this time of day (I should be doing my calls as I write) so get in touch middle afternoon if you want to chat.

Kind regards,

Barbara