Your first vending machine What to be clear about before you plug it in.

Eight steps, in the order they usually come up, each with a free guide or tool. If your machine is already in place, start at step six.

Guides written for Spain Free tools, no sign-up

Do the maths before you buy
What a machine makes is what is left after VAT, stock, the site's commission, waste, visits and what it cost. Put your numbers into the profit calculator and see how many sales you need just to break even. The calculation, explained, in how much a vending machine makes.
Find the site before the machine
Location weighs more than anything else in what you will sell. Before buying anything, agree the commission with the site (a percentage, a flat fee or both), who pays for the electricity and when you can get in to restock, and put it in writing.
The paperwork
It depends on the country. In Spain there is no national vending licence, but you do need to register with the tax office under the right business activity and, if you sell food, with your region's food safety register. All of it, with the details for each case, in how to start a vending business in Spain.
If it is second-hand, check all of it
The coin mechanism, the note reader, the cooling and the information the law requires on the machine. What to look at on the day you see it and which documents to ask for, in buying a used vending machine.
Choose what to sell and at what price
The price on the machine includes VAT, and not every product carries the same rate. In Spain, most food is at 10 % and drinks with added sugar or sweeteners at 21 %. We explain it in VAT in vending machines.
Get the load ready
Write down what goes in each slot, its price and capacity, and how many units each case holds. With the load list template you know what to take from the warehouse before you leave.
Reconcile the cash from the first collection
Note the counters, what was paid by card and the cash you count. If you start without doing it, you will not know whether a shortfall is new or has always been there. How to do it, in cash reconciliation.
Watch expiry dates and empty slots
An empty slot does not sell, and an expired product goes in the bin with its margin. With few visits they slip through easily: this is how to avoid empty slots and expired stock.

Questions

Before the first one.

Do I need telemetry to start?

No. With one or a few machines it works fine to note what you restock at each visit. We cover it in managing vending machines without telemetry.

How many sales does a machine need to be profitable?

It depends on its margin and its fixed costs. The calculator gives you your machine's break-even point in sales per month and per day.

With one machine, do I need management software?

With one, a spreadsheet may be enough if you keep it up to date. Once there are several machines, several people or expiry dates to watch, software pays off. What to look for when choosing, in vending management software.

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