Coin Machine Review (& Pacific ...)

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Coffee in the automatics is ahead for the
first four .months of 1950 in relation to the
same months in 1949, with eac h succeeding
month showing gains.
As predicted in this column last month,
it is reported that one concentrate producer
cut his price to operators ' a pleasing
amount, as the retail price of grinds took
a slight drop here.
Doughnu ts continue to keep th eir Topsy
and Eva places together with the java in
public esteem.
The condition of the mil k vending arm
of the Industry is fi rm, with the cost of the
fluid ap t to decline rather than increase in
the near future.
Juice machin e placemen ts are not as
good as might be expected, with the jerk-
ing of a big producing vendor at a public
garage, where drinks are now sold from a
soda bar instead. The many juice bars
downtown serve to keep down hopes of
placing automatics.
Candy sales held up in promising style,
but the advent of warmer weather saw
operators bringing out their summer-type
bars as thi s was wri tten. Operators are
fom! of these, and are pleased with the in-
creasing number of kinds and excell ence.
It is a toss-up between Clark Bar, Baby
Ruth, and Reese's Peanu t Butter Cup in
the popularity polls. 'This will possibly
change as summer sets in.
The cigarette position in the coin ma-
chines h ere seems good. T he price, 20
cents per pack, remains steady, in the fa ce
of chain store offerings at 17 cents, by the
carton, and th e increases usually expected
with out-of-door wea ther have been realized
consistently.
The cut in tax on the cheaper brands
will h ave no effect on a utomatic receipts,
as they vend only the stand ard bra nds in
the Big 5 price range.
LOOK
50 LBS.
BUSINESS BAROMETER
MAY
1950
Cincinnati ....... _ .. N
Columbus __ ._ ... _ .. A
Los Angeles ..... N
Seattle ...... ___ ... _._. N
St . . Louis ...... ___ ._. N
Spokane._ ... _ ... _ ... A
Was,h_, D. C ...... N
B
N
N
B
N
A
N
B N N N N N N N
NAB ANN N A
B N N N
N N
B
N A A NAN
B B N A ANN N
B NAB N BAN
BAN N N A
N- NORMAL
A-ABOVE NORMAL
B-BELOW NORMAL
Lucky Strike and Camels are one and
two, but in some parts of the city Chester-
field has to slug it out with Philip Morris,
it is reported, for third place, with Old
Gold and Pall Mall trailing.
Popcorn received a shot in the arm with
the announcement of the thea ter ticket tax
cut. Business last month was fair, but still
remaining in the normal listin g.
Theater' attendance is reported off 30 to
35 per cent in the last three months. TV
is blamed, and many suburban shows will
probably close several days each week.
Five theaters are aiready dark, as only six
out of forty of those still open are operat-
ing at a profit, it is said.
Although public spo ts are not being ex-
panded, and some abandoned, one auto-
matic lau ndry machine operator, with a
dozen machines placed in apartment build-
ings, claims his business has remained
steadily good for the past two years.
Sales of chewing gum were fair to dis-
ap pointing, as compared with the previous
month, wi th the over-all verdict "average
goo d." H ere the battle for supremacy is
between Wrigley's Spearmint and Beech-
nut, followed by Jui cy Fruit and Double
Mint.
A pleasant chan ge in nut re turn s took
_ place last month, with the penny machines
actually doing very well, possibly because
VENDIN
MERCHANDISE
WITH EACH
PURCHASE OF 10 MODEL 49r5
at 13.75 EACH. F.O.B. FAC-
TOR,Y. YOUR CHOICE 10 LBS.
EACH. CHECK ITEMS BELOW.
o
o
o
o
o
SPANISH NUTS
RAINBOW BEANS
PINE NUTS
BALL GUM s/ s "
FRENCH BURNT
0
0
0
0
0
BOSTON BEANS
PISTACHIOS
LICORICE PELLETS
RED SKINS
TEENY BE~NS
V3Deposit __ Balance
Don't Delay -
C.O.D.
Order Today
BADGER SALES CO.. INC.
2251 W . P ico Blvd.
30
Lo. Ang.I •• 6 , Calif .
THE NORTHWESTERN CORPORATION
8 ' 6 [A S T
' " III S T II 0" G
ST.
III 0 II II I S
I l l i HOI S
patrons hate to shell out larger su ms for
greater quan tities, with prices what they
are.
Record sales are ahead of last year and
-abotft on a par with last mon th . Third Man
Theme, Calico Ball, and a revival of In the
Evening by the Moonlight are hot in pops,
while I'll Sail My Ship Alone, Blues in the
Moonlight , and Heartbro ken are good folk
tunes, with Well, Oh Well a race riot.
As people started to shed heavier clotb-
ing ·they became more curious abou t their
weights and the scales did a resulting bet-
ter net.
Unemployment in the heavy industries
h as h ad little effect on vending machine
sales, and none is looked for, as generally
the economic picture is ex pected to
brighten.
De partment store sales were 10 per cent
better than those of the previous week for
the 65 ci ties reporting in this area. Cin-
cinnati, up 14, Cleveland up 2, were the
only cities bettering the 1949 monthly fig-
ures, an d the adjusted index reached a
new high of 327 for the ·year.
I.os Rngeles
R e ported by P aul Blackford
Normal can best describe the overall coin
machine picture in the nation's favorite
climate, although the apparent bid for busi-
ness is bringing brisk competition and
evidences ' of price cutting which trims
profits and makes purchasers wary of the
asking figure in most jobbing establish-
ments. On the game side it's a case of
com paring, with competing distributors
jockeying prices to get the business. Loose
credi t is also eviden t.
Big spurt in general busi ness activity
is anticipated during Jun e when the Shrine
stages its national convention here in mid-
month. Fez-wearers are expected to leave .
behind around five million which should
account for extra coins in the cash boxes
for most of the lads.
Shuffleboard enthusiasm is easing in favor
of the newer units which embody additional
playing features embracing bowling, hockey,
etc.
Officially the summer season for Arcades
opens Memorial Day and runs through
Labor Day. An imposing array of equip-
ment is r eady for visitors at beacb spots
a nd a lively season is anticipated.
Seallle
R eported b y W . A . P erine
Seattle's pin ball operators, who have
more than 2000 machines on locations and
employ 500 persons, are going to close up
shop in the near future due to lack of
business. The pin ball ban which became
eff ective April 1 is to blame, they say.
Pin ball equipment, valued at almost
$3,000,000, may have to be sold for a few
cents on the dollar. Another 2,500 persons,
including the proprietors of small cafes,
cigar stores and taverns who are dependen t
upon pin ball amusement games for in come,
also may be put out of business.
Location owners complain of the amuse-
ment game ban. They say organized gam-
blin g in card rooms and betting with " wire
hook ies" on out-of-state race tracks is wide
open while pin ball amusement games are
bann ed because they are "games of chan ce"
under a recent court ruling.
". Business in taverns has fallen off to some
extent' ahlttrugli tfie new Fairy and Gottlfeb
bowlers are helping replace the lost pin
ball income.
Cigarette vending machines are picki ng
up in sales. Bert Farmer, North west dis-
tributor for National, reports the new 7M
is becoming as popular wi th operators as
the older member of the National family,
COIN MACHINE REVIEW