Gillian White of 24 Vend

Vending Through The Looking Glass

Gillian White of 24 Vend (pictured), reports from the EVA AGM in Brussels

 

Last week was the EVA (European Vending Association) AGM and workshop.  Around 70 of Europe’s keenest Vending Professionals converged on Brussels to participate in energetic and topical conversations and issues affecting our industry.

Whilst the AGM offered EVA members to understand more about the mechanics of its association, the Workshop offered the EVA the opportunity to learn more about what keeps their members awake at night!
It’s a very interesting time to be in the vending or unattended retailing world right now.  With so much technological change in the world, it’s curious in a very Alice through the Looking Glass kind of way.
Vending is not new, particularly if you credit the ancient Greek Philosopher Hero with being the first in 215BC (or thereabouts!). Vending has come a long way baby and, until a few decades ago was way ahead of the field in terms of convenience and creating a “shopportunity” (if I may coin the phrase!) without directly involving a human to serve you.  Obviously, any humans involved with vending lurk before and after your engaging with the shopping or retail moment.  However, it’s probably fair to say that for most average vending moments, the technology leap that was so enjoyed in previous decades is now losing edge.   That’s an observation and not a criticism; it’s still a great way of shopping, just that there are rumbles in the vending jungle that it could be better.
‘The technology leap that was so enjoyed in previous decades is now losing edge.’
That sense of “how can we make a great industry even better” was a theme in the room throughout the workshop and particularly apparent from all our guest speakers.
First up was David Hoskin, guru of vending data, who encouraged every active player in vending to get involved in providing insight and information.  In no other industry with the scale and breadth of vending would there be such paucity of qualified data.  It’s strange that everyone who cares wants the data to be accurate, on time and available and yet, those who seek it may, on occasion, be looking for the teeth of hens.  Anonymised and aggregated, this data has such power and insight that would surely help all of us to do our jobs better.
Key message for us was “get involved”.
Second to the Podium was David Kirby from PWC, the global powerhouse of consulting.  A wide set of insights, case studies and market knowledge not limited to our own industry but others from which we can all learn.  Customer and consumer knowledge that can help shape our industry to be even greater.  Was a fantastic 20 minutes of information sharing, the likes of which can inform and shape business strategies.
Key message for us was “know more, do more, achieve more”.
Our third guest speaker wasn’t called David and once we had all overcome that disappointment (!), it was great to listen to Rod O’Shea from Intel who was travelling with some of his team.  (You can see a You Tube presentation of his here) They work with a wide range of industries and again had data and customer/consumer insights that were incredibly thought provoking.  The giant touch screen vending machine on trial at a US Campus caused a lot of discussion and not just about its cost!  I don’t think anyone in the room was unconvinced that theatre in vending is a good thing; people were just grappling with how to make it work in their parish!
Key message for us was “times are changing except perhaps not quickly enough in vending”.
This all sounds a little gloomy, but as we’ve said on many occasions, all issues are really opportunities in disguise.  The tension we feel between working in a technical industry and the fact that we aren’t necessarily able to embrace current technology quickly and effectively isn’t a bad thing.  There will be a game-changer out there for vending and the discussions last week show us that people care enough to try and find it!
Let’s think back to Stephen Hawkings at the London 2012 Paralympic Opening Ceremony and the quotation I gave you then “Look up at the stars and not down at your feet. Be curious”
 
Let us know what you think – be part of the conversation
Read more from Gillian HERE

About the author

The Editor

Planet Vending’s Editor is Ian Reynolds-Young and it’s Ian’s unique writing talent that has made PV what it is today – the best read (red) vending blog in the world, and vending’s best read (reed). Ian ‘tripped and fell into vending’, in the capacity of PR executive, before launching a specialist agency, ‘reynoldscopy’, dedicated to the UK Vending business. The company continues to represent the interests of many of the sector’s leading brands.

‘It’s all about telling stories’, he says. ‘We want to make every visit to PV a rewarding experience. By celebrating the achievements of the UK’s operating companies, we’re on a mission to debunk the idea that vending is retailing’s poor relation.’

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