Some vending machine customers are seeing a price hike in the products they are buying in Vermont vending machines. As of July 1, 2015, all food and beverages sold in vending machines in the state are subject to its nine percent Meals and Rooms Tax, which is leaving a bitter taste in the mouths of customers and operators.
Rob Litchfield, Sales Manager for Farrell Vending, told WCAX that he has had a few customers ask to remove vending machines from their location as a result of the tax. Litchfield told the source that the company sends $30,000 per month in tax revenue to the state from its 1,500 vending machines and needed to raise prices in order to avoid taking a hit on its bottom line.
Litchfield notes that the company has been adding healthier products in order to keep customers interested and coming back to the machines, but he expects his sales to continue to drop.
