Path to vending
Lincoln County Vending opened its
doors for business on February 1,
1989 as a Tom's Foods distributor
called Dan's Snack Sales. The com-
pany consisted of nine machines, one
truck and two men— father-son duo
Dan Holt Sr. and Dan Holt Jr. "We
started out with absolutely noth-
ing," recalled Holt. "We would ser-
vice machines, come home and count
the coins on the kitchen table once a
month. But we grew our vending busi-
ness by adding one machine at a time."
Although Holt enjoyed servicing
retail with product as a distributor,
he had bigger ambitions for vending.
When Holt's father decided to retire,
Holt purchased his father's share of
the business and renamed it Lincoln
County Vending (LCV).
Through the 1990s, Holt remained
a Tom's distributor but continued
growing his vending business. "I saw
an opportunity in vending and just
decided that was where I wanted to
go," he recalls. And in 2005 LCV left the distribution segment and became
a Canteen franchise. "We had seen all
that they could do in vending and we
were very eager to jump on board,"
said Holt.
But Holt wasn't the only one eager
about vending. His wife, Pattie, and
their four children Holly, Carlie, Dan-
iel and Levi helped run the company
early on and continue to aid in its
growth. "We all spend a lot of time
together, and we're a stronger family
because of it," Holt said.
Family involvement has been
instrumental. "When the company
began to grow in the 1990s, my wife
would take the kids around after
school to fll the machines," said
Holt. "Nowadays I feel secure that
our business will be here for years
to come." Holt jokes that he is wait-
ing for the time when his grandkids
come of age and can join the busi-
ness. "We'll make them work."
It's because his family, his
employees and his community count
on the success of LCV that Holt con-
siders every risk and opportunity
before investing in anything, and at
frst, that included technology.
David Talley, head maintenance technician
at Lincoln County Vending, is a valuable
member of the LCV team.
16 Automatic Merchandiser VendingMarketWatch.com March 2015
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