Vending

European vending association report explores consumer preferences

Image: Adobe Stock.

June 2, 2023

Quality, safety and affordability are the main drivers of European consumer purchases from vending machines, according to a newly completed report from the European Vending & Coffee Service Association.

The report covers four of the main vending markets in Europe — France, Germany, Italy and Spain — and includes comparisons of the key differences between the countries, according to a press release on the report.

The report focuses on the coffee and purchased food landscape from the working population, and covers consumption both at home as well as out of home.

The association commissioned the report in order to understand more clearly the changes in consumer preferences since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic and how this has translated into the most relevant and useful purchasing behavior in relation to coffee and vending.

Highlights include:

• 84% of respondents in Italy consume coffee at the workplace, with freestanding vending machines the most preferred channel for that (37%).
• Digital payments are most popular in France, with 65% of respondents there indicating that it was their preferred payment method. In contrast, 48% of respondents in Germany prefer to use cash.
• In all four countries, a majority of workers prefer to use the local supermarket to purchase food items such as sandwiches for the workplace, which indicates a potential opportunity for vending operators to introduce or expand solutions within the workplace to meet this need.
• In Spain, coffee machines in the workplace (64% being capsule machines) are the most preferred way to get coffee, followed by a restaurant/coffee bar and freestanding vending machines.

The report is free to association members and available for purchase for non-members.