The Greatest Generation Remembering Walter Reed

When I joined Vending Times as an assistant editor in 1988, our editor, Tim Sanford, spoke very highly of a man named Walter Reed. He mentioned that Walter was one of a number of remarkable people who really had put the vending association on the map. Tim recalled that Reed, who was then the National Automatic Merchandising Association's public relations director, had taught him the importance of effective communications in establishing a positive image for the vending industry. Tim had learned so much from Reed that he insisted we meet at the upcoming NAMA show. And I do recall my first encounter with Walter Reed ... he walked up to our booth at the show and scolded me for not wearing my press badge! After the color returned to my face, he shook my hand cordially and told me how fond he was of my father, and of Vending Times. This first encounter would become a standing joke between us.

Tim recently received a hand-written letter in the mail from Walter's wife, Jeanne Reed, informing him that Walter had died on January 13. I know many of you old-timers (like me, now!) will remember him, but what you may not know is that he had just published a book he had worked on for 12 years, The Children of La Hille -- Eluding Nazi Capture During WWII. According to his wife, he had worked long and hard, and seen it published to good reviews, but had little time after that to enjoy his success.

Walter served the association and the industry long and faithfully, from 1958 to 1989, and continued to keep in touch with Vending Times regularly long after he retired. We always enjoyed his letters; they were filled with witty commentary and a no-nonsense approach to the business. He would remark on an article and say "I still read you and am not reluctant to throw in my two cents' worth. But since I am long retired, I am not campaigning for, or against, anything or anyone."

When I learned of his passing, I went back to read some of those letters, and they put a smile on my face. It's amazing how on target he was about so many of the issues we grapple with today.

As the long-time public relations director of NAMA, Walter was on the front line when the topic of vending and "healthy" food reared its ugly head. He recalled the first criticisms that had arisen in the 1970s when the "junk food" allegation -- eagerly taken up by the news media -- became one of NAMA's major public relations challenges. The instigator of the "junk food" and vending canard was the Center for Science in the Public Interest "an activist anti-business organization." The American Dental Association briefly weighed in, too, contending that vended candy bars caused tooth decay. The ADA later moderated this campaign (there is a lot more sugar in the American diet than is put there by candy, let alone candy from vending machines). The term "junk food" was popularized by the CSPI, which later assailed a number of restaurant categories, from fast food through Chinese to Italian. In Reed's experience pseudo-science, rather than science, had (and has) a clever way of confusing the public, and he regularly found himself at odds with these groups.

At that time, the PR director had relatively little ammunition with which to fight back, because few suppliers (particularly the major soft drink and confectionery manufacturers) realized that nutrition was moving to the center of public consciousness. They had food scientists and dietitians on staff who did their best to convey a balanced message, but the primary corporate goal at the time was to drive volume, and they did not know -- yet -- that they had a problem. The operating companies knew that they stocked their vending machines with the items that people in their locations wanted to buy, and that they had also to conform to the policies of location management; between those two groups of customers, they did not believe that they could (or should) attempt to change public tastes. But as health and nutrition became major public issues, starting with schools, operators began to pay attention.

After Reed retired in 1989, he saw the need and opportunity to help vendors respond proactively. He set up an international vending consulting business and became connected to the "Heart Smart" restaurant branding/healthy menu organization which he adapted to vending. Walter told us that some 50 or more vending operators throughout the U.S. joined this program, identifying qualifying products in their machines and making use of his promotional material.

In more recent days, Reed would write to tell us how impressed he was to see more desirable products available and in demand, and how the once "conservative" NAMA had taken a leadership role. He, of course, had a good deal to do with that.

Rest in Peace Walter Reed. We inherit the world you built.

SEE ALSO: Walter Reed, Longtime NAMA Public Relations Head, Dies At 91.