Rug Doctor, a provider of carpet cleaning rental systems launched a pilot program called Rug Doctor Rapid Rents™ which provides a quick, efficient and user friendly way to rent and return carpet cleaning systems.
Rug Doctor teamed with Corona, Calif.-based AVT (autoretail.com) to develop the self-serve system that allows customers to rent and return the carpet cleaning machines through a touch screen based kiosk center without involving store personnel.
Tim Wall, Rug Doctor’s CEO said in a prepared statement, “The new Rug Doctor kiosk features an intuitive graphical user interface (GUI), cashless payment, alert notifications, real-time activity, and eye-catching graphics, and is a refreshing way to speed up the entire rent and return process in a dynamic and hassle free manner.” He further stated, “After a successful pilot program in several test markets, we are now in a position to expand our automated centers where it makes sense for our retail partners and Rug Doctor.”
With over 35,000 rental locations worldwide, Rug Doctor can be found in grocery, drug, hardware, and home center stores across the United States. Present-day U.S. operations include a main manufacturing facility in Fenton, Mo. and more than 35 warehouse distribution points and service centers around the U.S. More information can be obtained at www.rugdoctor.com.
Editor’s Insight: Yesterday, VendingMarketWatch reported on a vending machine that conducts a wedding ceremony and a bicycle repair supply vending machine.
These unusual concepts demonstrate the increasing capabilities of robotics engineering and in some cases, remote machine management. While most of these unusual concepts are not going to become commonplace, they do reflect the continuing evolution of automated retail kiosks. Inventors are finding ways to automate more and more services as the general public becomes more accustomed to self service. This trend bodes well for traditional vending. 06-30-11 by Elliot Maras
