How to Buy Used Vending Machines

The cheapest and fastest way to grow a vending business is to buy used vending machines. Used vending machines usually cost 50 percent or less of the original retail price. Sometimes you can even find vending machines that were never placed into accounts by owners who thought they wanted to do vending but changed their mind.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

1. Decide what you want to vend out of your machines. Vending machines are designed to dispense specific products so you will need to decide what you want to sell out of your machines before you can decide what to purchase.
2. Think about the type of accounts you intend to solicit for your business. The size of the businesses that you want to have as clients will dictate the size of the vending machines you will need to purchase. Consider the number of employees that type of business would typically have and the size of the buildings that they are usually in. For small businesses you might want compact vending machines. For large businesses you will need full-size equipment.
3. Determine whether you want to purchase equipment that is electronic or mechanical. Full-size vending machines are almost always electronic, but many of the compact models are mechanical. There may be some exceptions to the rule, but in general, mechanical vend is less expensive and less reliable. Electronic vend typically costs more but has fewer problems.
4. Know your own skill levels and limitations when it comes to repairing equipment. If you want to grow your business with used vending machines you are going to need to know how to repair them yourself. Calling in professional repair people will quickly offset the money you saved when you decided to buy used machines.
5. Research equipment before purchasing. Go see the machines in person if that is possible. Find out the manufacturer of the machine and the model number. Research the machine on the Internet to find out if the machine is still being made, if parts are available for the machine and what price it sells for new.

Tips & Warnings

• When using used vending machines you will most likely run into some machines for which parts are not available. If this is the case it is always a good idea to buy an extra machine or two to use as parts when you need to make repairs.