This report investigates the distribution of goods in the U.S. by vending machines. The most common products sold in this manner are hot and cold drinks, cigarettes, candy, snacks and confectionery items, food and meal items, sanitary protection products, and condoms.

The approximately $45 billion vending industry is in the throes of an evolution. Once their most-important consumers, the number of industrial workers has declined significantly. Vending operators are finding it necessary to find new locations for machines. Offices offer hope, but product and machine types need to reflect the smaller number of employees on site and their changing preferences. Providing healthy yet popular products, satisfying school requirements, and improving technology and efficiency are creating challenges for the industry.

This report investigates the distribution of goods in the U.S. by vending machines. The most common products sold in this manner are hot and cold drinks, cigarettes, candy, snacks and confectionery items, food and meal items, sanitary protection products, and condoms.

The approximately $45 billion vending industry is in the throes of an evolution. Once their most-important consumers, the number of industrial workers has declined significantly. Vending operators are finding it necessary to find new locations for machines. Offices offer hope, but product and machine types need to reflect the smaller number of employees on site and their changing preferences. Providing healthy yet popular products, satisfying school requirements, and improving technology and efficiency are creating challenges for the industry.

In this report, Mintel clearly identifies the principal external factors driving or curtailing growth in the vending market. Exclusive consumer research reveals the attitudes, needs and behavior of vending machine consumers, with analysis broken down both by demographic characteristics, and by product type.

Six years of specific sales data provide a factual and impartial presentation of the market as a whole. Mintel also evaluates the performance of individual sectors in the market, and provides information about the major companies and brands.

Excluded from this report are canteens, cafeteria-style services, office coffee service, and manual food service operations, machines for travel tickets, metro fare cards, postage stamps and other postal services, prepaid parking services, amusement and arcade games, video games, pool tables, gambling slots, coin change dispensers, gumball machines, bulk vending (such as jewelry and toys), and jukeboxes.