Uncle Sam
Member
We have been asked many times in recent years whether the extra investment in a ShurVend Visi-Combo refrigerated vendor to sell cold drinks is worth it. We sold many of these model vendors over the years when the investment was less and power costs were cheaper. The margin on soft drinks and other cold drinks is not as good as the margin on car wash products, but many operators wanted drinks for the convenience of their customers which is understandable in the hotter climates. This is especially true in the southern half of the U.S. where temperatures nearing 100 degrees happen quite often. The vendors are designed for use inside of a building where temps are usually in the 70-80 degree range, so outside temps of 100 degrees really stress the refrigeration unit. Since one has to add the security cage because of the theft and vandalism factor, that steel box absorbs heat that the refrigeration unit has to overcome. These refrigeration units will draw 1000 watts of power when running versus a non-refrigerated vendor that will draw around 50 watts. It takes many, many drink sales to pay for this power consumption if it ever does.
The costs of replacing the refrigeration unit itself keep getting higher year after year and the cost of power is also getting higher and higher. Customers that have purchased a Visi-Combo in the past are now having the units fail and, when I tell them the cost of a new unit, they just pull the plug on the refrigeration and run the vendor as a ShurVend “51” to sell car wash products only. I have recently sold these customers a new VendPro-iG4 unit that sells car wash products only and given them a trade-in price on their old Visi-Combos.
The bottom line is that we do not recommend a Visi-Combo/Cage package to sell cold drinks anymore, especially in the south half of the U.S., because the profit margins do not justify the investment necessary. They may make sense in the northern half of the U.S to some operators, but the hot climate needed to sell drinks is usually not very long. We would much rather see an operator invest in a VendPro-iG4 to sell car wash products only and get the 50% profit margin.
Uncle Sam
The costs of replacing the refrigeration unit itself keep getting higher year after year and the cost of power is also getting higher and higher. Customers that have purchased a Visi-Combo in the past are now having the units fail and, when I tell them the cost of a new unit, they just pull the plug on the refrigeration and run the vendor as a ShurVend “51” to sell car wash products only. I have recently sold these customers a new VendPro-iG4 unit that sells car wash products only and given them a trade-in price on their old Visi-Combos.
The bottom line is that we do not recommend a Visi-Combo/Cage package to sell cold drinks anymore, especially in the south half of the U.S., because the profit margins do not justify the investment necessary. They may make sense in the northern half of the U.S to some operators, but the hot climate needed to sell drinks is usually not very long. We would much rather see an operator invest in a VendPro-iG4 to sell car wash products only and get the 50% profit margin.
Uncle Sam
