4 replies to this topic

[Sir Ian]

I'm considering getting into this business and found someone who is selling their route. He has 98 U-turn machines (roughly half have 4 containers and half have 8), 92 of which are on location. He says his gross monthly profit is $3500 (which sounds believable, would be 1.65 sales per machine per day). He wants $18,000 for everything ($183.67 per machine) which I think is too much. However, I don't really know the value of these machines used. I understand I'm not just paying for the machines but also the locations and whatever candy he has, but that still sounds like too much. Also he has documentation of the sales for each location so I can see sales. How much do you think I should offer him for the business and what kind of questions should I be asking him?

Thanks for any input you guys give me~!

[minivend]

$18,000 is out of line..U Turn machines, in my opinion, are junk..Does he have contracts in place for these locations? What is his commission structure? Are you familiar with how to repair these machines if they fail?(which they will..) If your looking to get into this business..do yourself a favor and look at Beaver Machine equipment. Yes, its expensive..but it WORKS..I operate approximately 500 heads ALL Beaver Equipment with some of it OVER 20 Yrs old !!! The coin mechs are the best..Keep the equipment FULL, CLEAN, and NEVER out of order..Look for KID high traffic locations..Bowling Alleys, Indoor Soccer Arenas, Ice Rinks... http://www.usedbulkvending.com or http://www.michiganminivend.com..Good luck..Not many people respond to this site by the way...

[markvend]

Yes,

I also think this is way too much. Some of the mechanisms I have seen and heard from business owners don't hold up. I am also wary of his numbers he gave you. They could be true, but it seems like a lot. I also see this full of stale candy with 1 or 2 selections going great and the other 6 going bad.

I also have mostly Beaver equipment and it is great, but hard to find a route of beavers on location to buy.

Stay away from Vendstars!

Thanks,
Mark

[joshfizzle]

I agree with Minivend. $18,000 is too much. More than likely the seller is being overly optimistic. Plus, when you're starting out in this business it is a good idea to take gradual calculated steps and then build your way up as you learn more. For example, I'm a "newbie" too and I recently made the mistake of buying a 2-head machine that has a plastic body, I think the brand is Liberty. Yes, bad idea. Hypothetically, if I had bought an entire route that cosisted of these crappy machines, it certainly would have been a costly mistake. I don't have much money but from here on out I'm only going to buy Beaver machines. Sure they cost more up front but they will save time and money in the long run. Speaking of Beaver, does anyone know which is a better place to buy them from, gumballs.com or beavervending.com?

[kennr]

I find the amount they say they are making unbelievable too. I would take the time to read a lot of the posts on here. I have been around vending for over 40 years I wish I could stumble onto something that good. I suggest you actually go with them when they service the routes and count the money. Are they doing charity or paying out commissions? I saw a suggestion about beaver machines they are a very good machine I have several. Do your homework before you invest that kind of money. I see ads in the newspaper that say you can make $800 a week in vending. I know someone that fell for it. They are making $800 a week only problem they service their machines every 8 weeks and they make close to that on the week they service them. They get away with running the ad because it is not a lie you do make it on the week you service it.