Vending

Technology, Nestlé Waters' rebranding top Vending Times 10 best read 2021 stories

Best read technology focused stories in 2021 included artificial intelligence, robotics and amusement and entertainment applications.

Image provided by iStock.

January 3, 2022 by Elliot Maras — Editor, Kiosk Marketplace & Vending Times

New technology was a pervasive theme among the best read stories in Vending Times in 2021.

The top story, however, was on the rebranding of one of the convenience services industry's most established global brands, Nestle Waters.

Technology focused stories included amusement and entertainment applications, artificial intelligence and robotics.

Following are the top 10 best read stories.

Image courtesy of NestleWaters.

1. Nestlé Waters rebrands as Blue Triton Brands

The best read story in 2021 was the news that Nestlé Waters, one of the world's most established brands, changed its corporate name to Blue Triton Brands. This name change came following the completion of the company's March acquisition by One Rock Capital Partners, LLC from Nestlé S.A. in partnership with Metropoulos & Co. The article posted April 12, 2021.

The name, Triton, the god of the sea in classical Greek mythology, combines with the color blue, representing water, signifying the company's role as a provider of fresh water and as guardian of sustainable resources.

Image provided by iStock.

2. Will Area 15 in Las Vegas set a new bar in immersive entertainment?

The second best read article was a blog by amusement industry consultant Kevin Williams on the recently opened Area 15 in Las Vegas, an immersive entertainment and event complex, offering exhibits, dining, retail and entertainment in a free environment. The blog posted on March 1, 2021.

Area 15 offers a new ecosystem for retail and hospitality in addition to entertainment, featuring virtual reality exhibits and an augmented reality playground.

Hospitality offerings include the "Oddwood" central bar and event space and other food and drink destinations as well as an immersive indoor picnic concept called "Cloud 9".

Logo courtesy of Nestle Waters North America.

3. Nestlé renegotiating sale of North American water brands

The third best read story was a precursor to the best read story about Nestlé Waters. The precursor story, posting Feb. 3, 2021, was that Nestlé was negotiating with One Rock Capital, a private equity firm, to sell its North American water business for around $4 billion.

Nestlé Waters North America's portfolio included Arrowhead Mountain Spring Water, Poland Spring, Ozarka, Deer Park, Ice Mountain, Zephyrhills and the Pure Life brand in addition to the office beverage delivery service, ReadyRefresh.

Photo courtesy of HMS Host.

4. AI-driven self-checkout kiosk greets hungry passengers at Charlotte airport

A story on HMS Host's deployment of a cashierless food and beverage kiosk made by Sandstar at the Charlotte Douglas International Airport was the fourth best read story, posting April 21, 2021.

The customer opens the glassfront doors of the "Swap Grab Go" kiosk by scanning a QR code using their smartphone. A camera then traces the customer's actions. The customer is only charged for items they remove from the shelves.

A screen on the machine displays the final shopping cart and sends a receipt to the customer's mobile device.

The system's dynamic vision recognition system also activates a UV light cleaning cycle once the kiosk door is closed, killing 99% of any virus that could be present between uses.

Image courtesy of Laud Shawarma.

5. 'Shawarma to go' comes to Maryland

The fifth best read story featured how the owner of a shawarma restaurant expanded her brand with a vending machine during the coronavirus pandemic. The story posted April 14, 2021.

Kaosarat Fawehinmi, a Nigerian immigrant, left her position as a U.S. Department of Labor project manager to open a shawarma carryout restaurant in Beltsville, Maryland in 2019.

When the coronavirus pandemic forced her to close her restaurant, she came up with the idea of a shawarma vending machine. She used a Fastcorp frozen food machine equipped with a credit card reader and placed it in a shopping center.

Image provided by iStock.

6. US wholesale coffee prices rising

The sixth most read article reported that U.S. wholesale coffee prices were increasing as supplies shrank on account of a global shortage of shipping containers. Coffee stockpiles reached a 6-year low despite a record crop in Brazil, the largest growing region, while a drought was expected to crimp output. The report posted on March 26, 2021.

U.K. based consultant Marex Spectron upped its estimate for a global coffee deficit to 10.7 million bags for 2021-2022, compared to an earlier projection of 8 million bags, due to an expected lower Brazilian arabica output.

Image courtesy of iStock.

7. How, why AI is driving innovative vending operations

A story on how artificial intelligence technologies are taking root inside machines and driving innovation was the seventh most read story.

The story, posted Jan. 11, 2021, was a report on a panel session at the inaugural Self-Service Innovation Summit in December of 2020 that focused on how and why artificial intelligence is advancing in vending.

Panelists shared insights on how AI is improving vending operations. This included tapping computer systems to perform tasks previously requiring human intelligence, from speech recognition to visual perception to decision-making.

The panel featured Jared Detwiler, vice president of operations at One Source Office Refreshments in Pottstown, Pennsylvania; Josh Rosenberg, president of Chemesis International, a CBD development company; William Swift, president of Business Travelers Services Inc., an airport concessions service provider; and Daisy Teoh, director of innovation, Freestyle Equipment Innovation Center at The Coca-Cola Co.

Image courtesy of iStock.

8. Sodexo acquires Nourish commissary, upgrades US food solutions

A story reporting Sodexo acquiring Nourish Inc. and expanding its workplace dining solution featuring locally sourced food solution was the eight best read story. The story posted Feb. 1, 2021.

The acquisition and the expansion will strengthen the company's presence and delivery services in North American urban markets.

Image courtesy of iCream.

9. Robotic soft-serve ice cream machine debuts in California

The ninth best read story reported that iCream, a soft-serve vending machine that offers 25 flavor combinations of freshly made ice cream, debuted at the Westfield Century City mall in Los Angeles, with plans to expand to other southern California mall locations. The report posted July 7, 2021.

The machine uses a robotic conveyor arm to serve ice cream and toppings, and accepts credit cards, debit cards and payment apps.

Users select from a touchscreen, then watch the robotic arm create a soft-serve treat that it delivers in under a minute.

Images courtesy of PizzaForno.

10. Has pizza vending's time finally arrived? PizzaForno's off to a good start

The tenth most read story explored how Canadian partners Will Moyer and Les Tomlin used a European pizza machine to create PizzaForno, a pizza vending business model. The story posted March 3, 2021.

The machines include an indoor model and an outdoor model that can each hold 70 hand-made pizzas. The guest chooses from eight varieties on a 23-inch touchscreen, then pays $10-$12 for each pizza using their phone or credit card.

A robotic arm takes the pizza from a refrigerated chamber to a convection oven, pops it out of its box and cooks it for two and a half minutes.

Licensees are given exclusive geographic territories in which they operate a pizza topping operation to supply up to 50 pizza machines.