VendingMarketWatch Blog

Leave it to the food police to spoil the fun of an afternoon at the movies.

I happen to like watching movies; I always have. But as going to the theater got expensive over the years, I got into the habit of waiting for movies to come to my local library, where I can borrow them for free.
I still go to the movies occasionally when I feel like treating myself. I rarely buy any popcorn, candy and soda because of the astronomical prices the theaters charge for these items, but I fully understand someone wanting to indulge. “Everything in moderation,” goes the saying from an era when there was such a thing as common sense.

Do you know what it costs in calories?
Does anyone not know that movie popcorn is packed with calories?
Apparently not, judging by last week’s news.
When the Center for Science in the Public Interest released a report claiming that a popcorn-and-soda combo can match the calorie-and-saturated-fat count of three McDonald’s Quarter Pounders and 12 pats of butter, network TV stations had a big story on their hands.
One click of the TV and presto! Sizzling electronic images of tubs flowing with greasy popcorn and the fat-laden burgers whose calories they match.

What a way to spoil an occasional good time.
For us baby boomers, an afternoon at the movies is – I mean was – a favorite pastime.
At least subliminally, it was a chance to revisit our youth, when the local movie theater was a staple weekend entertainment excursion.
The popcorn wasn’t so expensive – even accounting for inflation – and as a whole, most of us led more active lifestyles, so we weren’t bothered by the calories … had anyone been warning us about them.
Nowadays, the consumer media is in a never-ending search for alarming headlines, and comfort zones are few and far between.
The food police are adept at pitching these headlines, and won’t even grant us that occasional respite. 

What a bunch of cowards and cheapskates!

The calorie disclosure requirement in the health care reform bill has raised interest in collective industry action as of late. If only more vending operators got the message, there might be a chance that the government will listen to us.

Last week, we had a blog discussion on the calorie disclosure proposal. Some operators were quick to say that they support the industry’s national and state associations. Unfortunately, too few were able to say this. (Check the blog if you don’t believe me.)

The time to act like a serious industry is now.

The calorie disclosure rule is only the beginning of a new government initiative to regulate us to death. A new era of government activism has arrived, and we’ve only gotten a small taste of it.

No matter how you feel about other government issues, none of us want a bunch of new rules to follow, and without a strong voice, this is exactly what’s coming.

Here’s a fact: Less than 20 percent of all operators belong to the National Automatic Merchandising Association (NAMA). NAMA estimates that 85 percent will be affected by the calorie disclosure rule. This is a good estimate; the rule applies to anyone with a minimum of 20 vending machines.

So a lot more of you need to get on board.

Many of you have issues with the things that NAMA does and doesn’t do. This is fine. It’s part of being part of an association. But it’s not a reason not to join.

For those of you cowards and cheapskates out there, and there are many of you, bring it on.

I want to hear from you NOW. Give me ONE good reason you don’t belong to the national and state vending associations.

Yesterday I got a call from an East Coast vending operator who was mad.

• He was mad about the calorie posting mandate in the health insurance reform bill.
• He was mad that the government is trying to require vending operators to post calorie information.
• He was mad that the industry isn’t fighting it.
• He was also mad at me for my October column. I suggested operators should consider video screens as a way to meet the requirement.

This operator felt that a trade magazine should speak out against a proposed rule that places an onerous burden on vending operators.

He had a lot of good points about the rule and the way in which the industry is responding to it.

The problem:
There are simply too few operators like him who will take the time and trouble to make a phone call. More importantly, there are too few who will support their trade association — the people trying to protect their interests.

Nutrition disclosure is coming. The vending industry can’t make it go away. The best it can do is suggest language that minimizes the work operators will have to do.

Who’s fighting for vending?
The National Automatic Merchandising Association.

But vending operators can do something too. Join NAMA. Membership has always been low, and not due to the economy. Even in the prosperous Nineties, not even a fifth of the operators joined.

Maybe if more operators cared enough to support their trade association the industry would have a better chance of preventing unwanted regulations.

So are you up for it? Let me know.

Recently, I received a lengthy letter from an operator I have known and respected over the years who in this blog, I will call Bob. Bob took some exception to a feature article in our September issue on pre-kitting routes. He has been in the business for more than 30 years and runs a large regional operation on the East Coast.
Bob’s letter went into great detail on the scenarios that an operator faces in trying to determine how to operate routes efficiently and at the same time keep machines stocked with products that customers want. He took exception to some of the claims that technology companies have made about ways to run routes more efficiently using prekitting.
No one can assure any individual operator how to use technology successfully, and there are most likely operators who cannot. But based on the success some operators have reported, which Automatic Merchandiser has presented in recent years and in observing what has happened in other industries, operators who cannot use technology are not likely to succeed long term.
The major retail organizations years ago underwent consolidation to achieve better economies of scale. The survivors emerged stronger players and they employed technology to optimize operating efficiencies. They also used it to develop reliable sales data that consumer product manufacturers use to develop better selling products.
Vending operators need better management data to run their companies more profitably and to provide better sales data for consumer product manufacturers.
Several technology players have emerged in the last five years that have demonstrated significant “staying power” in automatic merchandising. These players – who show up year after year at trade shows – have gained important insight about vending operations. The systems they offer require investment, training and commitment.

The systems they offer require investment, training and commitment.

For more on this topic, go to AM Uncut by clicking here or going to VendingMarketWatch.com and clicking AM Uncut under AM Interactive.