Vending Solutions

In Gulfport, Mississippi, high school students in the National Technical Honor Society built a vending machine that, from a distance, appears to be a normal vending machine. After taking a closer look, however, it is clear that this vending machine is unique and special. It is an older vending machine that has been turned into a solar-powered vending machine that dispenses free personal hygiene products to the homeless in the community.

While researching project ideas for a device that blended STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics) research with a community need, the students realized that there was a gap between when shelters and soup kitchens were open, and when homeless individuals needed help. To fill that need, they took an item that had a specific purpose, was no longer being used, and melded it into something new to meet a current need. Their approach is not new and can be adopted by anyone including Baltimore, MD organizations that need to change up their office break room to provide important benefits for their employees.

The older office break room or office kitchen, as it was known, is usually an unloved space located in an out-of-the-way location. Often it included poor lighting, a basic table and chairs, minimal amenities, and a traditional vending machine. Employees, especially Millennials, are looking for something different and have changed the way office break rooms are viewed. They are now seen as an important space that should inspire creativity and productivity, provide a spot to relax and interact with coworkers, and enjoy a meal or healthy snack.

To encourage your Baltimore, MD employees to stay on site to enjoy that meal or snack, consider offering free vend or specialty coffee service as a benefit in your office break room. Below are a few important points to know about each option.

Free Vend

• Employees pay part of none of the cost for beverages, snacks, or meals while they are at work
• Free Vend’s perceived value by employees is higher than the actual cost to the employer
• Employees are less likely to leave the office for a meal or break, which can increase overall productivity

Specialty Coffee Service

• Many specialty coffee services use sourced coffee beans and locally roasted coffees creating a unique coffee experience
• In addition to specialty hot coffees, many vendors now offer cold brew coffees as well
• Encourages employees to enjoy a well-made cup of joe without leaving the office

Have you considered adding one of these great benefits to your Baltimore, MD office break room? We’d love to help you determine which one fits your needs best. If you already offer specialty coffee service or free-vend and are looking to change-up your offerings, we can help you with that too. Contact SunDun Office Refreshments at 800.466.2731 to learn more.

How are your New Year’s resolutions going? Were you able to reflect on the past, create new goals, and make a few positive changes since January 1?

According to activepause.com:

• 40-45% of American adults make resolutions each year.
• the top 3 resolutions are eating better, losing weight and quitting smoking.
• only 46% of all the resolutions made will be kept after 6 months.

Health.us.news.com also states that 80% of New Year’s resolutions will fail.

The bottom line—change is hard. If it weren’t so difficult, more people would keep their resolutions, and maybe more businesses would still be, well…in business. Take Blockbuster for example.

Blockbuster was created in 1985, and for a while, it had a monopoly on the video renting business. In 2000, Reed Hastings, the founder of Netflix, flew to Blockbuster headquarters to meet with Blockbuster CEO John Antioco to propose a partnership with the multi-million-dollar company. Hastings wanted Netflix to run Blockbuster’s brand online and in exchange, wanted Netflix to be advertised in Blockbuster’s brick-and-mortar stores.

Antioco and his team turned down the deal. After all, they were the leaders of their industry.

In 2004, Antioco realized his mistake. Seeing Netflix as a competitor, he tried to compete with them. Antioco removed late fees and invested heavily in Blockbuster’s online platform. But in 2005, he was fired. His replacement, only seeing the $200 million dollars the company lost when Antioco banished them, reinstated the late fees.

In 2010, Blockbuster went bankrupt. As of February 2017, Netflix was worth over $61 billion.

A few lessons we could learn from Blockbuster are:

1. Be open to new ideas
2. Invest time, money, etc. in exploring those new ideas
3. Maintain a healthy online presence

SunDun Office Refreshments isn’t afraid to change with the needs of our Washington D.C. customers. We offer multiple ways to purchase items including credit/debit cards and mobile payment options; a variety of services including office coffee service; and a large selection of products including healthy snacks and beverages.

Contact SunDun Office Refreshments at 800.466.2731 to learn more about the options available.