Why don't we have cool vending machines in the US?
Why don't we have cool vending machines in the US?
with supply and demand and all... IM DEMANDING CANNED BREAD!! where's the supply 🥺?
It replaces workers with robots so it would probably save money too.
Too much reliance on cars for transportation and commerce built around that. Compared to Japan; we don't have the opportunity for vending machines except when we are contained to a location without the ability to go to a store that isn't that "far". We have a larger scale of living; a half hour drive is normal to us, but a half hour drive for other countries is at the tipping point of finding a place to stay for the night and a vending machine selling a common foodstuff makes sense.
If you were forced to walk everywhere and "corner stores" were infrequent, vending machines would be far more common and worthwhile for owners of those machines.
In the USA they lack the population density pressure to make it the most optimal solution of serving food, and the startup costs don't justify changing from human labor to fully automated food sales. Also I bet the quality isn't as good as you think it is from some preserved fried food wrapped in plastic.
Vending machines work better when there's more foot traffic and more density.
Vending machines with specialty goods (as pictured) need to be restocked every day and they require even more foot traffic. I think this is the biggest factor why OP's vending machine is not viable in a lot of places in the US.
My boss once said that you can abuse human workers, you can underpay them, you can worsen their conditions (and if you do it slowly) they might not notice, or they going to work even harder to survive. Worst case scenario they quit, and you just find another one "new" and repeat the cycle.
But you can't underpay robots. You can't abuse them. Why? Because they just break. You skip on maintenance, on working conditions, on anything around robots - and you are looking on fat sum of money that just going to get burnt on a new robot and its installation.
So no, robots are not going to save money, especially in this scenario, because abuse would be massive.
We used to. They were called Vendo-mats. They had sandwiches and cakes and all kinds of things. They weren't exactly vending machines in the sense that things would fall down. The food was behind a little door you'd open after paying. I'm too young to remember what the stuff tasted like, but it seemed pretty good because the food would always have to be put in the machines fresh every day.
I’m seeing a lot of advanced retail in US vending machines - inside airports. Food, electronics, cosmetics, all kinds of stuff.
This hints at the problem. Airports have improved security and you have to spend money on a plane ticket to enter so they don’t suffer the same dystopia as public spaces in the US which are trashed and destroyed by any asshole coming through who doesn’t give a shit, including the extremely impoverished and homeless which as a category includes many drugged up people, congenital criminals, and mentally ill. There are some over generalizations here about Americans all having no respect for others and this isn’t fair. Most are wonderful people. But enough Americans suck that it spoils the party for everyone, and broken window syndrome is a thing.
My company has a vending machine for computer accessories. For example, if you need a replacement mouse, just go over to the machine, wave your badge in front of the sensor, select the mouse, and wait for it to drop
I recall reading that part of why Japan has more vending machines and more variety is the ownership model. In the US vending machines are typically run by companies that service them and collect the revenue. But in Japan, they're typically owned by the shops. So shops are more likely to put a variety of products from their store in the vending machines.
I also suspect a higher incidence of social anxiety increases the demand for them in Japan.
Think about it realistically. Considering just food machines, what foods popular with Americans can realistically be sold out of a vending machine?
Popcorn is a clear winner. It can be made in advance, stored for a while, and then easily dispensed. Its profit margin is high. You can charge two dollars for a bag of popcorn that only cost you twenty cents in ingredients.
Packaged food like potato crisps is also a good idea for the same reason. You don't even need to keep the vending machine heated. Similarly, cold drinks and ice cream can also be easily dispensed out of a cooled vending machine, although I don't consider those different from "packaged food".
But what other American classics are there to consider? Hamburgers are out immediately. They're too complex to prepare fresh and most people wouldn't buy a reheated frozen burger.
Hot dogs might be viable, but a machine that sells hot dogs can only see hot dogs due to the mechanical complexity. I think many people would also question the freshness of a vending machine hot dog unless you cooked it right in front of them and let them see it via a glass window. Additionally, a hot dog has a much lower profit margin. If you charge four dollars for a hot dog, it might cost nearly a dollar in ingredients along with the mechanical complexity of the machine. Most people would expect the machine to also dispense condiments like ketchup, mustard, and relish.
Pizza is also complex and would take several minutes to bake from fresh or reheat from frozen. I don't think people would stand around for several minutes waiting for a machine to heat up pizza. Unless you can get the cooking time under sixty seconds, forget it. Pizza also traditionally baked at 700 degrees Fahrenheit, or 370 degrees Celsius. It's not an easy to safely install a component that gets that hot in a machine. Pizza that is pre-cooked and kept warm tends to not taste very good.
Fried chicken tenders will lose their crispness over time, even when kept warm. There is no temperature you can keep fried chicken at where it will remain crisp for hours but also not overcook. Hot oil in a machine is a recipe for disaster. French fries are a possible inclusion (the machine in the post sells French fries), but Americans don't really eat French fries on their own; they are usually served as a side dish along with something else.
Ideally, a machine should be loaded with frozen or pre-cooked food, which it merely keeps warm and dispenses to a buyer when purchased.
Think about Japanese food. Curry, in particular, can be served just barely hot and still delicious. Rice balls can be served refrigerated, as can cold Lawson sandwiches. Instant ramen is also popular, but that's just packaged food that requires a hot water spigot. I argue that Japanese food in general is just more suitable to be served out of a vending machine.
Walmart and Amazon have expensive canned bread.
apparently people like it?
as for cool vending machines... gotta be cool to have cool vending machines.
Sometimes those vending machines are very unsanitary and would not pass health regulations here in the US.
Americans would just crush themselves to death on them
I will say while I deeply agree that we don't have a cool vendung machine American identity...
My mall has vending machines for cotton candy that will make shapes, a vending machine for hijabs and other covers, a vending machine for medication and beauty products, a vending machine for umbrellas and a vending machine for weed.
I'd rather just have curry and hot chocolate but hey... Its something.
¥380 for yaki onigiri. That better not just be for one
That looks more like a hot vending machine
Food without a human guarded? Free meal?
CANNED BREAD
Since you mentioned it, I'm obligated to link this clip.
I saw an orange juice machine but it had a stupid fancy touchscreen and was out of order.
I feel like there's potential in this if you avoid the temptation to go with a complicated touchscreen and instead just keep everything as mechanical as possible
US $2.54
I saw a ramen vending machine when I was there a few weeks ago. Japan is light years ahead of us in so many ways.
Too bad.
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Hello there!
Costs
It replaces workers with robots so it would probably save money too.
And now the workers cannot afford bread.
Next move?
