Consider this question that a recent customer posed to us:

I am thinking about getting into the bulk candy vending business or I just got started in the business. What’s all of this that I hear about charities? Could you please explain? Should I be working with a charity? What are the positives and negatives to doing this?

One of the largest issues to overcome with bulk candy vending is how you will convince the location owner to place your machine in a particular location. Some vendors pay a commission directly to the location owner, this is usually 10%. Most people don’t realize that bulk candy machines don’t make very much money per month. The national average is about $10-$15 per month. Many other locating companies and people selling machines or routes will grossly overstate this figure, but you will find they have no way of backing it up. If you are paying a location $1 or $1.50 per month to have the machine there, they will often times get very suspicious. They will start to think the machine is making more than you are paying them, and if they get greedy you can easily lose the location.

This is where various charities saw an opportunity for donations and created “Vending Outreach Programs”. You, the vendor, pay a small amount, usually around $1 per machine per month to the charity. In exchange for this donation, the charity gives you stickers to put on your machines letting the location owner and customers know that a portion of the proceeds is donated to the charity. The charities also have marketing material available such as brochures, ID cards identifying you as working with the charity, and they allow you to use their name to help place machines.

This is really a win-win situation for everyone involved. The location owner gets to know they are making a difference by helping out a charity, the vendor now has an easy way to place machines in locations, and the charities themselves raise an enormous amount of money for their various causes. One of the most popular charities, the National Children’s Cancer Society, raises over one million dollars each year with the vending program alone.

Please keep in mind that many charities only work with vendors who are placing bulk candy machines. If you have bulk candy machines, or you are thinking of getting into the bulk candy business, working with a charity is the best way to go!