Part One.
Fresh Healthy Vending is a vending machine enterprise headquartered in San Diego, California (Callaghan et al, 2010). It was founded in 2010. The company is the leading healthy vending franchisor in the United States. It specializes in healthier alternatives to traditional vending machines which habitually offer junk foods products and beverages. Fresh Healthy Vending also boasts of 250 active franchises in over 44 states. The company has sold and delivered close to 3500 vending machines in the United States.
Part Two.
Cost associated with operating healthier vending
According to the Franchise directory 2015, buying a healthy vending machine from the Fresh Healthy Vending Company, stocking it with healthy snack product supplies and maintaining it for long term sustainability often attracts an initial capital of $10,750. This cost is summed up as follows:-
Part Three
Profits associated healthier vending
According to Fresh Healthy Vending, profits made through the sale of fresh healthy snacks range according to each product sold. For instance, most healthy snacks products retail at $0.75 cents per item. Healthy drinks on the other hand retail at $3.00 per item. This attracts a mark-up of between 70-100% (Callaghan et al. 2010). Coffee beverages retail from $1.00 to $2.50. The cost of each cup consumed approximates to $0.30. This attracts a mark-up of between 300-500%. 15% of the net profit on every fresh healthy snack usually is allocated to the location of the vending machine. This leaves you with 85% of the remaining net profit.
Part Four
Dos and Don’ts to succeed in healthier vending operations include:-
Dos:-
Attend intensive training programs to give your healthier vending initiative a healthy start.
Find suppliers to supply your healthier vending initiative with quality products at lowest possible prices.
Stock your healthy vending machine with your customer favourites.
Don’ts
Do not rely on a few loyal customers. Rather, diversify your healthy snack products to suit different types of customers.
Do not underestimate your competition. Make tactical decisions to enable you win.
Do not be afraid of failure. Challenge yourself to try out new things which might result in greater success.
Part five
Positive and negative outcomes of operating a healthier vending initiative
Like any business, there exist both positive and negative outcomes in carrying out operations. In the healthier vending initiative, positive outcomes include:-
Steady income.
Most businesses take years to break even. However, a healthier vending business often attains its break-even point within a few months of operations (Callaghan et al. 2010). All one requires is a good location to enable them start earning a steady income.
Easy to operate.
A healthier vending business is also easy to operate. This is because vending machines only require you to restock them periodically. Hence, one can choose to visit their machine locations once or twice every week to restock supplies.
Negative outcomes on the other hand include:-
Theft.
A negative outcome of running a healthier vending initiative is theft. Thieves always find ways to get freebies. One way is the use of mock coins. This can be a real challenge especially with vending machines that cannot differentiate real and counterfeit coins.
Repairs.
It is not uncommon for a vending machine to have occasional break down. However, due to their numerous workable parts, repairs are very costly. It is therefore important for one to learn how to repair their vending machines by themselves.
Part six.
Action plan
An action plan is a process aimed at helping you decide which steps to take in order to achieve a certain objective. It involves basic steps such as:-
Determine your objectives.
Set realistic goals.
Making schedules.
Part seven.
Picture of a school with a vending machine
The picture above shows two students from Valley Christian School in San Jose, California. They are purchasing healthy snacks from a healthy vending machine
Part eight
A survey on vending machines and childhood obesity
Childhood obesity is a key concern. In 2010, the Florida Youth Physical Activity and Nutrition carried out a survey on the availability of less-healthy foods in school vending machines. 4,000 students from 70 public middle schools in Florida represented the survey sample. An analysis of the findings showed that although healthier choices were available, most students preferred less healthyier foods. This went on to prove that obesity in kids could be linked to the availability of junk foods in their schools.
References
Callaghan, C., Mandich, G., & He, M. (2010). Healthier snacks in school vending machines:
a pilot project in four Ontario high schools. Canadian Journal of Dietetic Practice
and Research, 71(4), 186-186.
Park, S., Sappenfield, W. M., Huang, Y., Sherry, B., & Bensyl, D. M. (2010). The impact of
the availability of school vending machines on eating behavior during lunch: the Youth Physical Activity and Nutrition Survey. Journal of the American dietetic association, 110(10), 1532-1536.
