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Excitement is great fuel for starting a business. It's terrible for choosing a machine.
The operators who last aren't the ones who never get excited. They're the ones who check three numbers before they sign anything, and who are willing to walk away when the numbers say so. Walking away from a bad location isn't failure. It's the job.
Number 1: How long until the machine pays itself back?
Take what you'll pay for the machine and divide it by what it will realistically earn each month after product cost and the location's commission. Use a conservative sales guess, not the one you're hoping for.
If the payback needs everything to go right, you're gambling, not investing. The free ROI calculator runs this in under a minute, no account needed.
Number 2: How many hours does it actually cost you?
A machine 40 minutes away that needs a restock twice a week costs you real hours, real gas and real Saturdays. That's time you wanted back when you started this.
Map every stop you'd add against the hours you actually have. The vending time calculator shows how many locations a route can carry before it eats your week.
Number 3: Does the machine fit the space and the people?
A full-size combo machine in a 15-person office is overkill. A tiny snack unit in a 200-person warehouse leaves money on the table every afternoon. Match the machine to who's there and how long they stay.
Illustrative example
Illustrative only, not a real operator: a $4,000 used combo machine in a building with 60 people on site might sell 20 items a day at $2. That's about $1,200 a month in sales. After roughly 45% product cost and a 10% commission, you're near $540 a month before your time and gas, and payback lands around 8 months. Cut the daily sales to 8 items and the same machine takes nearly two years. The building made that difference, not the machine.
Why this is freeing
You don't have to guess, and you don't have to be a finance person. You need to be honest with three numbers. When they work, you can move fast with confidence. When they don't, you just saved yourself the most expensive lesson in vending.
All of these tools live on one page: free vending tools, no signup.
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The VendBuddy Team
