Found in public restrooms, gas stations, convenience stores, motels, outdoor recreation areas and many other places, medical supply vending machines offer a convenient, low-cost alternative to hunting down an all-night pharmacy. Packing single-use over-the-counter medicines, contraceptives and first aid products, these machines provide an essential service to customers as well as steady income for their operators.

The most basic medical vending machines offer 4 to 8 selection chambers, and are typically either wall-mount units or furnished with a space-saving stand. Elaborate, bulky units are generally not used to sell medical supplies; rather, the cabinet of a typical medical vending machine averages about 24 inches in length by 18 inches in width. Units are usually only a few inches in depth, depending on how many selection chambers there are, and how many products each individual chamber holds. As with vending machines designed for other products, medical vending machines can be configured to accept coins or card payments. You can also find units that accept bills and make change (which tend to cost more) or ones that don’t.

When shopping for a medical vending machine unit, keep in mind that manufacturers often charge for a unit’s individual components, rather than a single base price for a complete model. The cabinet itself is frequently sold at a fixed rate, with wall mounts or stands available for an extra charge. All reputable manufacturers offer solid customer warranties with their new products, so you should avoid purchasing medical vending machines that don’t come with at least a standard 12-month warranty on all parts.

Products That Sell in Medical Vending Machines

Once you’ve chosen the unit you want to purchase and have done your homework in finding a marketable, well-traveled area to locate your machine, all that’s left is to decide which products to stock.

Medical vending machine owners consistently report pain killers such as acetaminophen and ibuprofen among the top-selling drugs. These items sell particularly well in places where travelers stop to use the restroom, such as hotels and motels, rest stops and camping and picnic areas. Vendors can purchase single-use packets, containing 2 to 4 pain killing caplets, for individual sale to consumers at significantly higher rates than pharmacies charge. Customers are willing to pay extra for the convenience, and few people looking for immediate pain relief are going to forgo it in the interest of saving a few nickels and dimes.

Antacids and cold symptom treatments, such as nasal decongestants and cough suppressant tablets, also sell particularly well, the latter even more so during cold and flu season (spanning approximately November through March). Most vendors operate their medical vending machines like mini drug stores, offering a selection of products a person might look for in a pharmacy. To cater to a need that will always exist, many operators choose to include contraceptives as part of their product selection.

No matter which products you opt to stock, the industry’s track record shows that brand name products sell better than generic ones, so keep your machine stocked with the familiar names people trust, such as Vicks, Pepto-Bismol and Bayer. Remember, brand recognition is a low-cost form of advertising your vending machine; take advantage of the pre-existing popularity of trusted brands to help your medical vending machine garner more revenue.

Vendors can turn a cool profit operating ice vending machines. Thanks to improvements in temperature control technology, ice vending machines can now service consumers 24 hours a day, requiring little more than an electrical outlet and product restocking. Responding to the needs of their customers, ice vending machine manufacturers are now also offering units with never-before-seen features that can attract more customers, thereby increasing profits.

Features to Look For in Ice Vending Machines

Most ice vending machines you’ll encounter are a little like portable ice houses. They will automatically weigh and bag ice for a customer once payment has been entered. The best of them are designed to service the needs of both individual and bulk consumers, since flexibility is the key to maximizing revenue.

Thus, units which allow for scaled pricing, giving discounts to customers who buy more ice, are usually the most profitable. While most of the ice vending machines available for a modest price are coin-operated, units that permit customers to purchase ice using a credit or debit card are certainly worth considering, for two reasons. First, the convenience of being able to pay with a card can win customers who might otherwise have gone elsewhere to buy ice. Second, higher-end units with electronic payment capacities can help you recoup your up-front investment costs faster, since operators generally increase the price of ice when offering the ability to pay by card.

Ice vending machine manufacturers who offer their customers state-of-the-art technology also provide management support tools. With the rise of electronic communications, ice vending machines that permit operators to monitor sales remotely are gaining greater and greater popularity with vendors. Using a hand-held communication device such as a Blackberry, or a standard Internet connection, operators can interface with their ice vending machines to track sales and anticipate any service needs. As part of their warranty plans, some manufacturers even offer round-the-clock technical and mechanical support to customers, should a problem ever surface and affect the operation of the machine.

Other features that you can find in top-of-the-line ice vending machines include:

• vending of both bagged ice and bulk ice (for coolers)
• machines that seal bags automatically
• variable production capacity (the amount of ice dispensed can be customized to be as small or large as you choose to allow)
• computer-operated ice delivery systems

Ice vending machines can also be custom-painted to include a company name, graphic or logo. For a modest additional cost, available either from the manufacturer or from a private party specializing in sign and graphic design, you can customize your ice vending machine to attract more business. By accessorizing your ice vending machine with clear, strong lettering and attractive graphics that display the price of ice, people will spot your machine from further away and take notice of it, even if it’s just for another time. Ice sales remain relatively constant throughout the year, and vending machines that service the consumer’s need for ready-made ice are becoming an increasingly popular way for vending machine operators to make money.

Ice cream vending machines are a prime example of the technological improvements that have encouraged the resurgence of the vending machine industry. Today, machines that store brand-name frozen treats at sub-zero temperatures, as well as soft-serve and parlor-style ice cream, service a growing consumer demand. In fact, entrepreneurs can earn big profits by operating branded ice cream vending machine businesses, which typically include vending machines as well as storage freezers and a delivery truck with its own cooling system.

Popular ice cream brands such as Ben & Jerry’s, Haagen-Dazs and Mini Melts can sell well enough in vending machines to earn a business owner a primary income stream. Of course, placement is important: experienced business owners encourage start-up entrepreneurs to seek out locations that encourage indulgence but remain underserviced by the sweet treats many people crave. Prime examples include food courts and cafeterias, student centers on college campuses and at high schools, as well as busy, high-traffic areas such as transit stations, recreation centers and shopping malls.

A Case Study of an Ice Cream Vending Machine Business

Building an ice cream vending machine business can even lead to six-figure profits. Consider the following example, drawn from a website featuring a Mini Melts vending machine business up for sale.

The owner was asking $350,000 for a fully operational, mid-sized ice cream vending machine business. Included in the sale were 20 individual Mini Melts vending machine units as well as a half-dozen delivery cases, eight sub-zero freezers and a delivery van. Also included was a licensing agreement with Mini Melts, Inc. that permitted the ongoing use of the brand name.

The business sale advertised a cash flow of $50,000 per year and a gross income three times that level. Inventory cost an average of $15,000 a year, and maintenance costs, while not factored into the purchase price, were easily manageable with the generated cash flow. The business employed a grand total of three employees. Perhaps most remarkable is that this successful business was built in just five years, beginning with a single vending machine and a shrewd businessman who reinvested his profits.

Types of Ice Cream Vending Machines to Consider

Relatively simple units offering pre-packaged ice cream treats make up a significant share of the market. However, newer technologies like soft-serve ice cream vending machines are poised to make big gains in the near future. These machines contain cones which are released and filled with the customer’s choice of soft-serve ice cream flavors once payment has been entered. Forward-thinking vendors are also taking advantage of growth in the fat-free sweets market by offering generic low-fat ice cream and frozen yogurt. These machines typically allow customers to buy a pre-set number of scoops, which are distributed in Styrofoam or plastic containers.

However, those interested in getting involved in the ice cream vending machine business should be prepared to face costs that are significantly higher than those associated with more traditional vending machines, such as those that sell snacks or drinks. The patented technology used to make ice cream vending machines work is costly and complex, so it’s highly recommended that you have a financing plan in place if the manufacturer doesn’t offer one.