VendingMarketWatch.com |

The vending industry is experiencing its most difficult time ever. And while operators struggle, technology continues its march forward, setting the foundation for future where automated retailing plays a major role in the way consumers live.

All segments of the vending industry — operators and suppliers alike — struggle to sustain sales and profits, while a parallel industry — kiosks and digital signage — evolves, creating new opportunities to sell a greater variety of products and services in a more sensory intensive manner.

As Automatic Merchandiser has reported on these innovations in recent years, the magazine’s editorial team has wrestled with the question of what relevance kiosks and digital signage has to traditional vending.

I believe that the most recent Self Service Expo in New York City was especially instructive in answering this question.

During the expo, several exhibits presented technology that provides new ways for vending machines to give shoppers promotional deals and offers. By incorporating some of the technology that the kiosk and digital signage industry is using, vending machines can provide more information to answer shoppers’ questions and, at the same time, speed up transactions.

To date, kiosks and digital signs have been deployed outside of the traditional vending industry. These devices have become very sophisticated — with excellent graphic capabilities and fast, responsive customer interfaces. Getting vending, kiosks and digital signage to work together is a significant challenge.

The good news is that it’s already being done. There are market tests in progress in the U.S. and in Europe with cold drink machines, snack machines and hot beverage machines. 
It will take time. And it will take money — serious investments — for the companies involved to test and refine these exciting new developments.

But for the traditional vending industry to become relevant to the retail foodservice and refreshment consumer, these investments have to be made.