Play Meter
Issue: 1980 August 15 - Vol 6 Num 15 - Page 11
everything was working all, right before he started back
because it was such a long way. So I looked at that and
saw where we were losing a serviceman for the entire
day. And I started weighing that against the collection
and saw where all I was doing was furnishing somebody
with a job . I was buying a lot of gctsoline and wearing out
a lot of tires , and the location was making money , but I
wasn't.
That's when I went back to those locations and told
them I would just have to have more money or else I
couldn't afford to do business with them. And I found out
that even when I was making s-ixty percent with these
locations, I still couldn't afford them. So-I got in touch
with another operator in the area , sold him my stuff down
there , and got out of that region.
Anyone can promise
service backup.
But when your top
earning~ game is down,
PLAY METER: From your answer , then , it appears you
do look at more than just your collections . Isn't that right?
ANDERSON: That's right. I look at my overhead . Like
that little route that was way out in the country, I got to
looking at the whole thing and got to thinking that I had
one man devoted to that route down- there . And by the
time I took , the cost of his vehicle , the cost of operating
that vehicle , gas , tires , insurance, his payroll, and the
other fringe benefits, I found out all I was doing was
furnishing him with a job . So , by elirfiinating that route , I
was able to eliminate a vehicle and a person, and I was
able to free up some money to do more good for me
elsewhere. It wasn 't making a penny for me down there.
Lopping off unprofitable locations also had its effect on
the size of my operation , too. At one time I had 49
employees, but now I'm down to 14 in this office ; and
that's counting .. the bookkeeping staff, receptionist ,
everybody. You wouldn't believe it , but my, business is
healthier because of it. The same thing happened for me
with my music business, by the way.
you need
more than l\
a smile and a promise.
PLAY METER: You found the music end to be
unprofitable for you?
·
ANDERSON: Yes , out here the music business kind of
got ruined by operators who went on a stt:_aight rental. For
awhile they thought it was a pretty good idea because
they went in and got so much a week , and that was it.
But then the locations started to complain because fhey
weren't making any money off the jukeboxes because
their help was playing it for free . ·So, consequently, the
rentals just kept getting lower and lower. In fact, there
were some big companies going around offering
ridiculously low rentals.
And the same thing was happening out here with pool
tables . So I just scratched my head and figured her·e again
I wasn 't making any money on it; so I went to this big
operator who was into music and pool but who was very
little into the amusement field as far as videos and
flippers,
that out, I started making some money. By the way, the
.other day I talked with the gentleman who I sold all that
stuff to , and he told me things haven't gotten any better.
It's still a struggle . So I think I make a wise decision.
At first , when I sold all that, I thought this would really
dig into my cash flow, but then I saw where it was kind of
a false deal anyway . It was a tremendous amount of cash
coming in , but it was also a tremendous amount of cash
going out , too . With my cigarette vending machines, for
instance, after all the smoke had cleared, it seemed the
only money I was making in vending was what I was
making in ! oyalty payments.
You Need
C.A. Robinson & Co.
WE'VE BEEN SERVICING OPERATORS'
NEEDS FOR 43 YEARS. NOW, HONESTLY,
DO YOU THINK OPERATORS WOULD STILL
BE COMING BACK IF ALL WE OFFERED
THEM WAS A SM.ILE AND A FALSE
PROMISE?
~
·
OUR UNEXCELLED REPUTATION FOR
SERVICE HAS HELPED KEEP US IN
BUSINESS ALL THESE YEARS.
.FIND OUT, LIKE OTHER OPERATORS HAVE
FOUND OUT FOR 43 YEARS, WHY THERE'S
SUCH A PIG DIFFERENCE.
C.A. Robinson & Co.
PLAY METER: Getting back to your music problems,
you saw the rental as the beginning of the end for the
profitable operation of jukeboxes in your area?
ANDERSON: Well. a lot of operators thought that was
0
2301 WEST PICO BLVD.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA 90006
(213) 380-1160
PLAY METER, August, 1980
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because it was such a long way. So I looked at that and
saw where we were losing a serviceman for the entire
day. And I started weighing that against the collection
and saw where all I was doing was furnishing somebody
with a job . I was buying a lot of gctsoline and wearing out
a lot of tires , and the location was making money , but I
wasn't.
That's when I went back to those locations and told
them I would just have to have more money or else I
couldn't afford to do business with them. And I found out
that even when I was making s-ixty percent with these
locations, I still couldn't afford them. So-I got in touch
with another operator in the area , sold him my stuff down
there , and got out of that region.
Anyone can promise
service backup.
But when your top
earning~ game is down,
PLAY METER: From your answer , then , it appears you
do look at more than just your collections . Isn't that right?
ANDERSON: That's right. I look at my overhead . Like
that little route that was way out in the country, I got to
looking at the whole thing and got to thinking that I had
one man devoted to that route down- there . And by the
time I took , the cost of his vehicle , the cost of operating
that vehicle , gas , tires , insurance, his payroll, and the
other fringe benefits, I found out all I was doing was
furnishing him with a job . So , by elirfiinating that route , I
was able to eliminate a vehicle and a person, and I was
able to free up some money to do more good for me
elsewhere. It wasn 't making a penny for me down there.
Lopping off unprofitable locations also had its effect on
the size of my operation , too. At one time I had 49
employees, but now I'm down to 14 in this office ; and
that's counting .. the bookkeeping staff, receptionist ,
everybody. You wouldn't believe it , but my, business is
healthier because of it. The same thing happened for me
with my music business, by the way.
you need
more than l\
a smile and a promise.
PLAY METER: You found the music end to be
unprofitable for you?
·
ANDERSON: Yes , out here the music business kind of
got ruined by operators who went on a stt:_aight rental. For
awhile they thought it was a pretty good idea because
they went in and got so much a week , and that was it.
But then the locations started to complain because fhey
weren't making any money off the jukeboxes because
their help was playing it for free . ·So, consequently, the
rentals just kept getting lower and lower. In fact, there
were some big companies going around offering
ridiculously low rentals.
And the same thing was happening out here with pool
tables . So I just scratched my head and figured her·e again
I wasn 't making any money on it; so I went to this big
operator who was into music and pool but who was very
little into the amusement field as far as videos and
flippers,
that out, I started making some money. By the way, the
.other day I talked with the gentleman who I sold all that
stuff to , and he told me things haven't gotten any better.
It's still a struggle . So I think I make a wise decision.
At first , when I sold all that, I thought this would really
dig into my cash flow, but then I saw where it was kind of
a false deal anyway . It was a tremendous amount of cash
coming in , but it was also a tremendous amount of cash
going out , too . With my cigarette vending machines, for
instance, after all the smoke had cleared, it seemed the
only money I was making in vending was what I was
making in ! oyalty payments.
You Need
C.A. Robinson & Co.
WE'VE BEEN SERVICING OPERATORS'
NEEDS FOR 43 YEARS. NOW, HONESTLY,
DO YOU THINK OPERATORS WOULD STILL
BE COMING BACK IF ALL WE OFFERED
THEM WAS A SM.ILE AND A FALSE
PROMISE?
~
·
OUR UNEXCELLED REPUTATION FOR
SERVICE HAS HELPED KEEP US IN
BUSINESS ALL THESE YEARS.
.FIND OUT, LIKE OTHER OPERATORS HAVE
FOUND OUT FOR 43 YEARS, WHY THERE'S
SUCH A PIG DIFFERENCE.
C.A. Robinson & Co.
PLAY METER: Getting back to your music problems,
you saw the rental as the beginning of the end for the
profitable operation of jukeboxes in your area?
ANDERSON: Well. a lot of operators thought that was
0
2301 WEST PICO BLVD.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA 90006
(213) 380-1160
PLAY METER, August, 1980
::"'
;
Jf
:;,
<
•
•o
•
~
~
f:L
J.
11
• • ..
'\.:'
_::..:._. · ' .
,'
·E ' ·
·,
.
·-·
.
·. .,.
,1,
•
I''~
•
c\-~t·-
'
_.
··~
0
.
,~~·
1· . ~
'
~
J'
;•
~
· . ..j
·3-i
.
'
~:;_
•··.'
. -.::~
,...
'
·:·.
,
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