How to choose a place for a machine
Choosing a profitable place for vending trade is one of the most important and difficult stages of opening. The volume of sales depends on the successful location. To install a vending machine you will need no more than 2 square meters. m. Thanks to such compactness, you can place the machine almost anywhere - the main thing is that it can be connected to electricity.
How to choose a place? Let's start by defining the specifics of the service itself. The standard scheme for choosing a crowded place does not work here. It is most profitable to locate vending machines for making keys in residential areas - local residents will be your target audience. Most often, a person who needs such services is simply looking for a service closer to home or “along the way.”
A good place for a vending machine would be an area near bus stops and grocery stores. It is also beneficial to locate the service close to large new buildings or utility bill offices. But first of all, it is recommended to choose those places where it is easier to agree on installing the machine. This way you will shorten the duration of the preparatory stage and get started right away. The easiest way to install the machine is in shopping centers.
Comparison of trading platforms for vending machines
| Room in a shopping center | Room in a residential area | |
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| Minuses |
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The average cost of renting such a point is 2-5 thousand rubles per month (depending on the city). But shopping centers can charge twice as much. And the main thing here is not to miscalculate and correctly assess the pedestrian flow.
There are still enough places to install such machines. The market is practically empty; in many cities there are no competitors at all. In some places you can try to negotiate and install machines almost free of charge. You can use 2GIS or Google maps to find the best areas in your city, busy streets, and advantageous properties that you can locate next to.
In addition, take into account such a criterion as the distance of installation sites from each other and from your location. If you plan to service the machines yourself, it is advisable to install them not very far away so that they can be easily and quickly reached. This will save you not only time, but also money (don't forget about transportation costs!).
Recommendations, pros and cons
Keep in mind right away that it is best to install the machines in a large city. In megacities, people have long learned to handle such devices, but there are also regions where people, seeing such an innovation, may become confused.
The main advantages of vending:
- large investments are not required at the start;
- it is easy to maintain;
- you can conduct business on your own without involving anyone else;
- vending is easily compatible with other business areas;
- place the devices on a minimum area: from 1 to 2 m²;
- profitability is always high;
- can work 24 hours a day;
- advertising will cost a minimal amount;
- Over time, there is an opportunity to expand the business and install several machines in different parts of the city.
In the process of work, sometimes you have to deal with disadvantages:
- sales depend almost entirely on location;
- choosing a suitable place is not easy;
- the risk of vandalism is high: hooligans can break into the car or cause serious damage to it;
- machines sometimes break down, which is associated with the cost of repairing them.
Rules for successful business from real professionals
How to evaluate a location for installing a machine
The size of the machine’s profit is most influenced by three key parameters:
- Passability of the point;
- Rent amount;
- Conversion.
These are the ones you need to analyze when choosing a location.
Passability of the point
How to evaluate the passability of a point:
- Independent “field” calculations.
The most reliable way to assess foot traffic is to spend a day or two exploring the area and counting the number of visitors.
- Landlord information.
Another way is to request data from the landlord. Shopping centers must keep records of attendance. But sometimes the indicators are deliberately inflated in order to increase rent. Also, shopping centers often provide general attendance. And if a shopping center has several entrances, then attendance is distributed among them (and unevenly).
- Involvement of an intermediary.
The third way is to contact a specialized organization that will conduct research for you. But such expenses will be advisable if you plan to open a network of similar machines, and not just one.
The minimum traffic volume at which installing a machine is advisable is about 2,000 people per day. With such indicators, you can count on revenue of 30-40 thousand rubles per month.
Rent
The rent for a revenue level of 30-40 thousand rubles should be about 5 thousand rubles. In some cases, a lower fee may be negotiated. And also choose a convenient payment format - a fixed rent or a percentage of profit. This is convenient if the landlord sets a high rent or it is difficult to assess the attractiveness of a retail outlet.
Conversion
Conversion is a parameter that reflects what percentage of people passing by your machine buy keys from it. That is, it is traffic per hour divided by the number of orders per hour. Practice shows that on average this parameter is 2-3%. This value can deviate both up and down - it depends on the price of keys, the time of year, the number of people passing by, the visibility of the device itself, etc.
Selecting a room
The demand and success of your project depends on the placement of machines. Often the machines are installed in pairs along with other vending projects. Good placement options would be business centers, office buildings, manufacturing plants, service stations or car washes.
The rent depends on the location. This can be a percentage of income or a fixed check, usually up to 5,000 rubles.
How to choose a key making machine
Buying a machine is a major expense. By business standards, this is a small amount - from 150 thousand rubles for one machine. But experienced vending entrepreneurs advise opening several retail outlets at once. It’s better to start with 2-3 devices. If your budget is limited, you can lease machines or purchase used equipment.
The number of machines depends on your capabilities. But a sense of proportion is also important here. First, assess the demand for the service, calculate the most effective placement points, and calculate the planned income. And only then make a purchasing decision.
Today, there are several companies that produce such machines - Fast Key, Key Me and others. The first key making machines appeared not so long ago. And so far no Russian analogues have appeared. Therefore, transportation should be taken into account when planning initial costs.
Let's take a closer look at several manufacturers:
- Fast Key vending machine
is designed for making electronic keys, and can also sell several types of different key fobs and accessories. The cost of such equipment is 210 thousand rubles. In Russia there are representative offices in several cities.
- KeyMe
— operator of self-service kiosks for making duplicate keys for houses and garages. At the same time, there is a function that allows the client to choose the shape of the key. Thanks to the machine installed inside the device, you can make not just a duplicate key, but an interesting little thing according to the client’s preferences.
- MinuteKEY
- a device that can make duplicate keys. The client is invited to choose the color and design of the future key, and the number of copies. The whole procedure takes a few minutes. The machine also has space for key fobs.
So far, the easiest way to purchase Fast Key vending machines in Russia. But you can find Chinese-made equipment - feel free, but why not?
How much can you earn from key making vending?
The profit of the machine largely depends on the number of clients and location.
The approximate cost of 1 workpiece is 20 rubles. And making a key costs about 100 rubles. This means that the profit from 1 key will be 80 rubles. It will be enough to make only 10 keys a day to earn 24 thousand rubles in a month. With a pedestrian traffic of 2,000 thousand people, it is quite possible that 2% of pedestrians will use the services of the device. And this is 40 people and a profit of about 94 thousand rubles. For popular spots with high pedestrian traffic, such sales are quite realistic.
So, on average, the revenue of the machines will be 50 thousand rubles per month. Now let's look at the costs. These consist of rent, ingredient costs and taxes. In total, this is approximately 20-25 thousand rubles. After deducting all expenses, the entrepreneur will have a net profit of 25-30 thousand rubles per month. These are the average rates at which the initial investment will pay off within a year. For a vending business, this is a normal and very realistic indicator.
Service and registration process
You will only need a few hours a week to fully maintain the device. The main task is to fill it with raw materials every month, from which the machine subsequently produces keys of the required shapes and sizes. An important point is the timely withdrawal of money from the receiver. You also need to learn to understand the principle of operation of the equipment in order to monitor its serviceability and troubleshoot problems in a timely manner.
Things Every Leader Should Focus on
Choose an individual entrepreneur as a form of business organization, and the taxation system in the form of UTII will allow you to deduct a minimum amount to government bodies, which will be no more than 2-3,000 rubles. A significant advantage of organizing this simple business is that it does not require special permits in the form of licenses, as well as conclusions from the SES or fire department.
How to advertise vending
The main way to advertise any vending machine is to place it in the right place. In itself, this is quite catchy, attention-grabbing equipment. Outdoor advertising is effective for vending, so you can use banners, signs, pillars, etc.
This business does not need aggressive advertising, but it does need to inform its potential customers. Add your machines to the 2GIS system, as well as any other city directory, post advertisements at the entrances of residential buildings nearby.
Business pitfalls
- Equipment.
A very serious problem that an entrepreneur may encounter at the start is the purchase of equipment. The idea is new for Russia, and the choice of vending machines for making keys is small. Of course, you can find suppliers and purchase the necessary equipment. But the issue of adapting it to work and servicing can become a real problem.
- Technical difficulites
– another difficulty for vending. Dealing with such a problem is quite difficult, because little depends on you. The maximum you can do is place an ad on the machine asking you to call the service number to report a breakdown. Some types of equipment can be connected to a special application through which you can monitor the work.
- Vandalism.
Unfortunately, in practice there are always many more inadequate people than entrepreneurs assume. Sites that are located on the street and do not have security are especially susceptible to this risk. To avoid this, try to locate the machines in secure areas and equip them with strong locks and security measures. You can stipulate in the contract with the landlord his financial responsibility for damage to property. This way you will protect yourself and compensate for repair costs if an unpleasant incident occurs.
By taking into account these nuances, you can avoid unnecessary expenses, which means you can earn more. However, this business format should be considered more as an additional way to earn money. Making keys in vending machines is rather a “rehearsal” for a beginner. The combination of low competition and high demand for the service are good conditions for starting. Let's summarize: vending is a business that requires a thoughtful strategy and attentive attitude. This is the only way to make it profitable.
Evgeniya Yurkina
(c) www.openbusiness.ru - portal of business plans and guides for starting a small business
08/07/2019
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