Commentary

Why technology is driving a bright future for vending

Providing the right customer experience, with a fast, seamless and secure purchasing journey, is a key factor for success. To manage this transformation correctly, industry players need to be able to scale accordingly.

Image provided by iStock.

July 11, 2022 by Caroline Jeanneau

From micro markets to smart fridges, there is an array of exciting trends currently developing within the vending industry. The COVID restrictions have acted as an accelerating factor to these dynamic developments, which were already present before the pandemic.

Traditional food and beverage vending machines — 80% of which are either in factories or offices — went through an incredibly tough period when customers had to stay at home during lockdowns. But technological developments are helping accelerate growth again.

The migration to contactless is ongoing and, although there is still migration to be performed among vending operators, it is here for the future.

Contactless penetration has now hit 80% in Central Europe — and even 95% in Central Eastern Europe — demonstrating how this payment method has become the norm for many Europeans.

Micro markets, smart fridges take off

Micro markets continue to present huge opportunities, witnessing major growth since 2020. These include small, unattended convenience stores in workplaces as well as frozen, connected snack bars.

Today's micro markets allow items to be taken from open shelves before being processed through a self-service checkout. Bypassing the need for physical checkout, these stores also offer the benefit of being open 24/7 and providing the customer with the convenient shopping experience they have come to expect — one that is quick with minimal touchpoints.

Similarly, smart fridges are also being touted as the future. These devices are already being deployed widely across the U.S. and are now gaining increasing interest in Europe.

Smart fridges are highly programmed, intelligent devices that track what is stored or taken out of the fridge, enabling effective stock monitoring for businesses. The transaction is pre-authorized before the customer opens the fridge and chooses from a range of fresh goods.

Hybrid work raises the bar at the office

As employers increasingly adopt hybrid working arrangements, with employees frequenting the office fewer times than in previous years, customers want to enjoy better quality products when they travel in for work. Coffee is a good example — we have witnessed people wanting less of it, but of a greater quality, although that can lead to increased prices.

There are now more fresh foods available than ever in kiosks and the idea of "fresh and healthy products" also comes hand in hand with the rise of outdoor, automated machines, which allow vending operators, retailers and indeed farmers to sell goods.

For example, a farmer may sell fresh milk or other animal products from a machine on their farm. This also satisfies consumers' increasing desire to eat "local," which is widely accepted to provide greater benefits from an environmental point of view.

Technology makes the difference

All these trends open up new opportunities for operators and vending manufacturers. But they all require, one way or another, the leveraging of more technological, cloud-based or connected solutions.

Businesses must invest in the data, technology and systems required to enable them to deliver the kind of exceptional consumer experiences that will give them a competitive edge.

Providing the right customer experience, with a fast, seamless and secure purchasing journey, is a key factor for success.

To manage this transformation correctly, industry players need to be able to scale accordingly. This can be done smoothly with transitional steps, but what matters most is to invest in evolutive solutions, future-proofed to enable extended capabilities now or soon.

About Caroline Jeanneau

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