Introduction to Smart Vending Machines and the social impact

In our previous blogs, we have talked about how there is growing business scope and demand for vending machines in India. Despite this excitement, the  smart vending business still remains an untapped industry. In this article, we will cover the social impact of starting a smart vending machine business – creating jobs. This will act as an added incentive for entrepreneurs to start their own vending business. 

Direct and indirect ways in which a smart vending business creates jobs

Manufacturing 

Manufacturing vending machines on a considerable scale is an industry grade task. And as such, it requires both skilled and unskilled labour. From manufacturing the metal case to installing the glass and spiral rings for the products, a vending machine creates jobs for each of these processes. Many times, these components are sourced from other industries (e.g. metal industry, LED companies, etc.). Therefore, the ripple effect generates more jobs in those industries too.

Operating

You may have often seen a person standing next to a vending machine helping customers use it and keeping an eye on the stock. As the number of installed machines increases, this will also generate employment. With the smart vending machines now coming of age, there is no need for a person to be deployed to maintain the inventory. However, keeping an eye on the dashboard and connecting all vending machines is still needed.

IoT Elements

Smart and interconnected vending machines are the thing of the future in the vending industry. As such, companies engaged in the Internet of Things (IoT) business have a great scope of supplying its products and services to the vending industry. From software to hardware products like automated locks and chips. The vending industry can generate additional employment opportunities for IoT companies.

Logistics

By using smart vending machines, the inventory is updates itself in real time on a cloud when using the smart vending machine. The advantage is that logistics of the vending machine business can be totally outsourced. By observing demand and inventory, vending machines can be refilled.  To specialized logistics and delivery companies like Dunzo, Zypp Electric, etc. This demand from the vending industry creates more jobs within those companies too which hire more delivery partners.

Retailers

Big companies, especially in the food and beverages sector are looking to expand their touchpoints. From e-commerce to more physical stores, these retailers are trying to reach the maximum number of customers. Furthermore a vending machine provides an additional touch point for these big retailers. By installing vending machines at inaccessible or space-restricted places, the big companies can meet the needs of convenience of their customers and generate more profits. As the demand for their products will increase, these companies will need to expand their manufacturing and employ more people. Thus, a vending machine business will indirectly generate more jobs within these big retailers also.

Local Vendors

There are a number of local food vendors who are extremely popular in certain locations but due to budgetary constraints are unable to expand their business to more physical locations. A smart vending machine provides an instant solution to such problems. By installing their own vending machines at various locations or by buying a certain space within the existing vending machine. These local vendors can expand their touchpoints and even create brands for themselves.

Check out this vending machine that allowed a local panipuri seller to automate their business and serve more customers in Delhi (insert thumbnail of the video)– https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KViNI9Erl00

By helping these local businesses reach their full potential. The vending business creates more entrepreneurs locally and also generates more jobs indirectly. Especially in tier 2 and tier 3 cities.

How Vendify Can Help

By enabling the smart vending machine operators and business owners in managing their operations with a click of a button, As an IoT SaaS provider that automates the entire business chain of a vending business, Vendify provides the technology using which entrepreneurs can start their own vending business. Furthermore Vendify provides a dashboard and cloud managed inventory to monitor the sales and performance of each vending machine.

Thus, the software works the same for any big retailer or local vendor who is looking to expand the business beyond a few stores in a specific region. Jobs have been increasing with the increase in operations. But our software remains equally applicable to all accommodate all such scales. 

Furthermore, our ERP solution comes with a monthly subscription model at highly disruptive prices. Making it affordable for small and big retailers. To know more about how Vendify can help you in expanding your touch points and create a social impact by generating jobs in your community, contact our team at sales@vendify.in.

For more information on smart vending machines and how they can help your retail business, please read our blog – https://blogs.vendify.in/what-is-a-smart-vending-machine/