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DEVELOPMENT MANAGER Wendy Chady
PUBLISHED AND COPYRIGHTED 2014 BY
CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER John French
CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER Paul Bonaiuto
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AUTOMATIC MERCHANDISER (USPS 017-280) (ISSN 1061-
1797, print; ISSN 1948-5697, online) is published nine times
per year: February, March, April, May, June, August, September,
October and December by Cygnus Business Media. Periodicals
postage paid at Fort Atkinson, WI and additional entry offices.
POSTMASTER: Please send all change of address to AUTOMATIC
MERCHANDISER, PO Box 3257, Northbrook, IL 60065-3257.
Canada Post PM40612608. Return Undeliverable Canadian
Addresses to: Automatic Merchandiser, PO Box 25542, London,
ON N6C 6B2. Volume 56, Number 1 Printed in the U.S.A.
CONSULTANT
REPRESENTATIVE,
ITSL MEDIA
REPRESENTATIVE
Celebrating
the small business
Vision, dedication and know-how drive the success of many entrepreneurs
MANY
vendors
start out
small
in their
garage.
Facebook/VendingMarket @VendingMagazine http://linkd.in/VendingMarketWatch
any great businesses have started in
the garage. Disney, Hewlett-Packard,
Google, Mattel. They were all launched
by men and women with an entrepreneur-
ial spirit and shoestring budgets. With hard
work and dedication these small businesses
grew to be some of the biggest companies
and are all well-known, household names.
To me, this is not unlike many vending
companies. I've lost count of how many
successful vending
operators started
small, in a garage or
a basement. Many of
them are now large,
multi-state companies
in the second or third
generation of owners.
Honoring the small
operator
This frst issue of
2014 is dedicated to
small, start-up opera-
tions. If you are new,
welcome. You will
fnd great informa-
tion in this issue
including tips from a
vending veteran that
will help you man-
age your frst employees — route drivers.
Having vision
Most prosperous operators have one thing
in common — vision. Regardless of size
or age of the company, this is what drives
an operation forward. It's a key element
to our success story for this issue, All Star
Vending & Coffee Service in Twin Cities,
Minn. The company was started in 1987,
but the current owner is revitalizing the
small operation started by his grandfather.
With an eye towards growth, he's reacting
to consumer trends, leading with social
media, bringing the consumer back to the
machine and providing the same service
his grandfather's customers expect.
If your operation is no longer small, con-
gratulations. We celebrate how far you've
come. There's plenty in this issue to interest
you as well, from the newest products to
understanding the overtime exemption
laws. Don't miss "Are you paying your
drivers correctly?" about overtime compen-
sation written by Heather A. Bailey, Esq., a
partner with SmithAmundsen LLC and a
NAMA Knowledge Source Partner LE.
Outlook optimistic
I looked back fve years to see the size of
operations in the industry. In 2009, we
reported that 75 percent of the vend-
ing operators did less than $1 million
in revenue. The last report showed that
number to be 61 percent. Where did the
other operators go? Well, the percentage
of medium, large and extra-large opera-
tors grew by an average of 4 percent each.
Success in vending is attainable.
The economy is showing growth and
unemployment is in decline, allowing
me to feel optimistic that we will hold
our own this year. I can't wait to meet
all of you who, in 2014, will grow out of
your garage.
M
4 Automatic Merchandiser VendingMarketWatch.com February 2014
E D I T O R ' S N O T E B Y E M I L Y R E F E R M A T
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