Coin Machine Journal

October, 1933
THE
COIN
MACHINE
7S
JOURNAL
Qood Management
K e y to S u c c e s s
in
Can’t Be a Santa Claus on Vending Machine Profits,
HE most important point to
consider in locating machines
is to determine the number
of prospective buyers your machines
are going to have in the location you
select. Be sure that the merchandise
you use in a location is going to be
in demand in that particular spot.
Do not try to sell safety razors in
places where women congregate or
compacts where men hang out.
In merchandising with the one
and five cent vendors it is important
to keep your machines clean at all
times and to always have fresh con­
fections and nuts in them. You
should rotate your product in these
machines weekly or no less than
three times a month. By rotating
you keep your play up. Your cus­
tomers seeing something new in 'the
machines from time to time will
know that it will always be fresh
and will therefore purchase from
your shop. At the same time they
will never grow tired of the product
sold. Many experiments that have
been conducted by us in the past
have shown that your little shop
does get a large percentage of steady
or repeat business.
The second factor of importance
is the location owner. For your ma­
chines to be profitable in his place
of business he must be the kind who
will co-operate with you. He should
see that your equipment is given the
best of care and always placed to the
best advantage where it will attract
the attention of his patrons. He
must be a pleasan't person and a go-
getter in his own business. If he is
that kind your little shop is sure to
earn money for you, but if he is the
surly, cross kind or if he is contin­
ually “crabbing” about your ma-
By THOM AS M. STEARNS
Route Manager
Vend-Rite Systems
chine it will not be worth having in
his place.
Equipment Is Important
Another factor in the chain of
points of profitable operation of
vendors is the equipment you are
working with. If you have up to the
minute equipment, placed properly,
you will receive the maximum of re­
turn. Placing properly means that
you should not stint in the use of
stands, brackets and the like. Many
locations will improve by just the
addition of a stand, or by merely
moving a machine from the inside
to the outside. Do not 'try to get by
with the old and poorly painted
equipment. If you are using old
equipment give it a coat of paint,
and always keep it clean.
Don’ t Be a Santa Claus
The fourth point is the commis­
sion paid to locations. Some oper­
ators go about offering higher com­
missions than should be paid. I have
known of instances of commissions
as high as fifty per cent of the gross
on penny veiidors. Such a commis­
sion is far too much and usually
there is a reason for such offers. The
operator either does not know his
business and is out just for his
health or he may have such delapi­
dated equipment that he cannot get
it in without paying sueh high com­
missions to his locations.
From my experience I believe in
making commissions to locations on
a sliding scale based on the amount
of business done in each particular
place but at no time more than one
third of the gross.
By no means the least important
factor is YOU, the operator. You
must be pleasant and a good fellow.
By being a good fellow I do not
mean that you should give away
your profits, but I do mean that you
should make a practice of purchas­
ing from your locations the things
that you have to buy somewhere
anyhow. They like it and in turn
give you a boost whenever they can.
Also the promise of a competitor of
higher commission will not be any
inducement to throw out your ma­
ehine and take on another,
Chicago Operators Cali Meeting
The three Mendelsohns, father and two
sons, said to be Brooklyn’s largest oper*
atom
Enhanced Scans ■
© The International Arcade Museum
Fred Mann, secretary of the In­
dependent Coin Machine Operators
Association of Illinois, dropped in
to inform us that a call has been
issued for a meeting of all Chicago
and Cool? County operators at the
Sherman Hotel, Thursday evening,
October 20. The meeting is open
to all operators whether members
or not, at which time information
of value to operators will be given
out by the officials.
http://cmj.arcade-museum.com/