Afleveringen
-
Fixturelite, based in Phoenix, Arizona, has been the industry’s leading supplier of micro market retail displays, equipment and design tools for ten years. But they didn’t start out that way. Steve Orlando and Troy Geis were successful operators who discovered the micro market business early on and realized that this new solution was going to be big.
Orlando and Geis kept hearing from industry experts and micro market pioneers that micro markets should be considered unattended retail, with an emphasis on retail - not just vending on a shelf. What they did not see were display racks and fixtures reflecting that idea. So – they started building their own. Fixturelite was born.
In this episode of Automatic Merchandiser’s Vending & OCS Nation – presented in partnership with Fixturelite - host Bob Tullio sits down with company co-founder Steve Orlando to talk about the Fixturelite journey, their products, some impressive company milestones (most notably, 10,000 markets delivered in 10 years), key strategic partnerships, their explosive growth, and the company’s plans to continue developing innovative solutions for micro market operators.
-
The 2024 NAMA Show in Dallas is just a few weeks away and from all indications, it will be one of the biggest gatherings the convenience services industry has ever seen.
On this episode of Automatic Merchandiser’s Vending & OCS Nation Podcast, in partnership with NAMA, it’s all about the NAMA Show in Dallas – May 7th through May 9th.
Podcast host Bob Tullio talks to Kristen Griffith, Vice President of Programs and Services for NAMA and C.J. Recher from Five Star Breaktime Solutions, co-chair of the Tradeshow Advisory Committee, to give you an exclusive sneak peek at the big event.
-
Zijn er afleveringen die ontbreken?
-
Kim Miros doesn’t think much about being a successful female business owner. What she is truly proud of is where her business is now – capable of providing for herself, her employees and their families. Talking about it brings a tear to her eye.
This new episode of Automatic Merchandiser’s Vending & OCS Nation, Bob Tullio focuses on the journey of Ocala, Florida, based Kim Miros – Owner of DAC Total Refreshments. Kim admits that she is totally addicted to the business. She loves closing micro market, coffee service and vending deals.
Kim always wanted to own her own business. She left a successful and rewarding teaching career and bought a vending company. It seemed like a great idea, but Kim quickly realized that she was blindsided by the seller. The performance of the business wasn’t quite what she expected. For Kim – that was the start of a journey that was incredibly stressful, very inspiring, often amusing and certainly entertaining.
-
A recent Wall Street Journal article points to vending as a strong investment trend of the 2020’s. Reports on social media portraying the vending business as easy money are drawing entrepreneurs toward the vending business. Can they be successful competing against established operators?
This edition of Automatic Merchandiser's Vending & OCS Nation Podcast explores the world of small operators, as host Bob Tullio talks to two small operators who are doing their best to navigate the always changing business landscape, and one supplier who has found a nice niche helping small vendors with installation and service support.
One thing that everyone seems to agree on: While there is money to be made, there is nothing easy about it. Hard work and a keen business sense are required for those who hope to succeed.
-
For Linda Saldana, the co-founder of Seventh Wave Refreshments in Atlanta, there is plenty of joy to go around. That's why Vending & OCS Nation host Bob Tullio decided to tell her story in two parts.
In our first podcast episode this month, we focused on Linda's journey. That episode was entitled, “To deliver joy, Linda Saldana brings faith, passion and energy to her work.”
Then we talked about the art of business storytelling, well connected to Linda, because she has a great story to tell, and she tells that story with plenty of energy.
If you missed those episodes, be sure to check them out. In this episode – Linda Saldana is back to share her strategies, plans, insights, key partnerships, what keeps her up at night and her recipe for the secret sauce that helped her go from zero to millions in sales, in four years.
-
Storytelling is a powerful way to communicate with people - personally and in business. Knowing the fundamentals and understanding certain key strategies can make the difference when using storytelling to help clients and prospects make the right choices.
In our last episode, featuring Linda Saldana of Seventh Wave Refreshments, she made reference to storytelling, a sales technique that Vending & OCS Nation host Bob Tullio has written and spoken about on numerous occasions over the years. In fact, he just wrote about business storytelling on March 13, 2024, in the monthly OCS operator newsletter from Vending Market Watch.
It’s not surprising that Linda brought storytelling up in the podcast – since every great salesperson is a storyteller and she has certainly been a standout for quite some time. Tullio has his own theories about business storytelling and shares some of them in this episode. He also interviewed a couple of genuine story telling experts - Todd Dewitt and Erik Eklund – who both speak globally on the subject and offer unique perspectives on storytelling.
-
Chances are, if you are in the convenience services business, you have heard the name, Linda Saldana. In 2023, Automatic Merchandiser named her as one of the "Most Influential Women in Convenience Services."
In this episode of Automatic Merchandiser’s Vending & OCS Nation, host Bob Tullio sat down with Linda Saldana to talk about her professional and her closely connected spiritual journey. Largely because of her visibility on social media and her presence at NAMA events - including the NAMA Show, the Fly-In and the CTW, Linda has in fact become a highly recognized name in the convenience services industry in a relatively short period of time. She joined the industry almost 12 years ago, rising to sales director at Southern Refreshment Service and fell in love with the business.
She co-founded Seventh Wave Refreshments in Atlanta in 2020, with a mission to “Bring Joy to the Workplace” during a most unsettling time – in the middle of a pandemic. Her faith, her passion, her perseverance, and her energy – it all makes for a good story…
Later this month - Part II of the Linda Saldana journey, including business strategies and industry insights.
-
A family business can change dramatically from one generation to the next. That’s exactly what happened after Jim Evans joined Evans Quality Coffee. He followed societal shifts to move the company from industrial/mobile catering to vending and coffee.
On this episode of Automatic Merchandiser’s Vending & OCS Nation, host Bob Tullio gives you a view from the big apple – a conversation with industry veteran Jim Evans of Evans Quality Coffee, Vending and Micro Markets.
His company was founded in 1960 – 64 years ago - by Jim’s folks, Ed and Mildred.
Tullio covers plenty of ground with Jim as he reflects on the journey, his strong relationship with operators in his area, all of whom have been through a lot doing business in New York. His love-hate relationship with Keurig, his attraction to online sales (which became a distraction) and some scary memories from 9-11.
Jim also identifies his key suppliers and points to one new product that he is particularly excited about. It’s a candid and inspiring operator story.
-
Bob Tullio, the host of Automatic Merchandiser’s Vending & OCS Nation, is the first to admit that he loves telling his listeners a good success story, whether it is the story of an operator or supplier who has something special to offer.
In this episode, we explore the journey of an entrepreneur who is a bit of a disrupter. Now in his early 30’s, Jonathan Noori has taken his operation – Royalty Distribution, from being a modest janitorial supply company to being a major manufacturer and distributer of paper products. Now – he is determined to serve the OCS industry, where he is convinced that operators are paying too much. How he got to this point is incredible. It’s literally a story of going from the outhouse to the penthouse…
-
In this episode of Automatic Merchandiser's Vending & OCS Nation podcast, host Bob Tullio explores two sides of Jennifer Fox, owner of Fox Vending in the Chicago area. It's about overcoming personal challenges and doing what it takes to succeed in business.
You will hear the dramatic story of Dragonolia and Herren project, all driven by the loss of her brother and how these philanthropic efforts have helped her thrive on a personal basis.
Fox also sounds the alarm for operators, making her feelings known about what operators need to do to compete with national competitors and she talks about what everyone in the industry can do to dramatically improve profitability.
-
In 2023, Automatic Merchandiser recognized Jennifer Fox, president of Fox Vending in the Chicago area, as one of the industry’s most influential women. In this episode of Automatic Merchandiser's Vending & OCS Nation podcast, host Bob Tullio talks to Fox about her journey and her courageous approach to doing business.
Jennifer Fox’s story will be told in two parts, Bob Tullio is sure you will find the content quite compelling. Welcome to part one, where Jennifer really opens up about her journey and the state of the convenience services industry.
In part two, you will hear the dramatic story of Dragonolia and Herren project, all driven by the loss of her brother and some personal struggles that Jennifer has overcome in her life. Plus - more insights on what makes her company successful and her belief that this is a special time in our industry – a time where operators can re-write the script for convenience services.
-
How often do you think about lighting? In this episode of Automatic Merchandiser's Vending & OCS Nation podcast, host Bob Tullio talks to some leading micro market consultants and to Cam Cloeter, the founder of Lighting for Impact, a company that is literally dominating the retail lighting market from coast to coast.
Based on the data presented by retailers that are served by Lighting for Impact, their entry into the micro market industry is great news for operators. Adding lighting or enhancing the lighting in a retail setting can result in a measurable, long-term jump in sales.
After listening to this podcast, listeners are certain to have a "lightbulb" go off with the realization that it makes good sense to start thinking about lighting.
-
Bob Tullio, the host of Automatic Merchandiser’s Vending & OCS Nation, admits that the title of this podcast makes a bold claim, but he stands by it for good reason. “I know these three business development strategies work, because I have seen them work. This will guarantee success for operators in 2024,” he said.
Tullio is a firm believer that there is a certain time, place and market condition that is right for various business development strategies. 2024 is a year that is set up to be a great one for operators and account executives who are selling convenience services. The three strategies that Tullio is advocating are tailor made for 2024.
If you are sales professional, an operator or anyone in our industry who wants to see their revenue jump significantly in 2024, sit back and relax – here is some fresh content from Tullio on Automatic Merchandiser’s Vending & OCS Nation. After you listen – put these ideas to work – get out there and sell!
Featuring insights from Kimberly Lenz of Associated Services, Brynne Tillman (the LinkedIn Whisperer) from Social Sales Link and Patricia Cowen of Rainmaker Sales Support.
Also mentioned in this episode:
Panoptyc, Graphics that Pop, AVS Companies, Cafection, 365 Retail Markets, Fresh Baked, Mars Ice Cream Fixturelite, Bevi, SmartSoda, Friia from Marco Beverage, ColdSnap, Borg & Overstrom, Easy Ice, Mars Ice Cream, Emerald Brands and Lighting for Impact.
-
In this 25th episode of Automatic Merchandiser’s Vending & OCS Nation, the podcast for the convenience services industry, host Bob Tullio brings listeners a Special Edition – it’s the best of 2023, featuring some of the most interesting comments and insights that we heard this year from operators and suppliers.
Enjoy excerpts from 18 different episodes, with comments from Bob Tullio, Matthew Marsh, Sandy Schoenthaler, Kim Miros, Arthur Siller, Cary Werner, Charlie Giacona, Melissa Brown, Dan Welch, Mike Kelner, C.J Recher, Amanda Puppo, Donna Serdula, Brynne Tillman, Evan Jarecki, Linda Saldana, Orrin Huebner, Barry Rosenberg, Judson Kleinman and Tom Stueber.
Tullio urges listeners to “sit back, pour an egg nogg, turn off the volume on that completely insignificant bowl game and enjoy a good listen,” the best of 2023. All episodes of Automatic Merchandiser’s Vending & OCS Nation are available on your favorite podcast listening platform or app.
Thanks for listening in 2023. Please subscribe. Happy Holidays!
-
After David Ashforth sold his vending business in the UK in 2008, he came to San Francisco, expecting to see high tech everything, including vending machines. He was shocked by what he saw. Vending machines in America were anything but high tech.
In this episode of Automatic Merchandiser’s Vending & OCS Nation, host Bob Tullio talks with David Ashforth, who saw an opportunity, launched Digital Media Vending and began manufacturing vending machines. Digital Media Vending is not a traditional vending machine manufacturer. They specialize in helping operators and entrepreneurs utilize their custom equipment to sell a wide variety of products. Soda, energy drinks and snacks are not part of the equation, but Ashforth encourages mainstream operators to take a long look at what Digital Media Vending has to offer, simply because the revenue streams being enjoyed by his clients are quite impressive.
“Mainstream vending operators have the infrastructure in place to service any location,” said Ashforth. “It is a mistake for an operator to avoid the opportunity that exists in airports, shopping malls and other non-traditional locations that our machines are made for. The unique design of our machines opens the door to locations, like airports and malls, that are typically out of reach for most operators.”
After the NAMA Show in 2023, Ashforth suddenly finds himself in front of a trend, as selling niche products from attractive equipment was an exciting and popular concept. Mainstream operators are beginning to take notice of what Ashforth is selling.
-
One of the things Bob Tullio loves about hosting Automatic Merchandiser's Vending & OCS Nation podcast, is having the opportunity to learn about the journey of both suppliers and operators. For him, this episode, “A down to earth conversation with Dan Welch of World Cup Coffee,” turned out to be a most enjoyable interview.
When his dad, Don Welch, purchased their company in Portland Oregon back in 1985, it was known as Diversified Refreshment Systems. Soon after, the name was changed to World Cup Coffee. Don passed away in 2014, but the emphasis on family continues to be a cornerstone of the business.
There are so many charming aspects to this interview, from Dan’s reasons for joining the business, to their move into becoming a respected roaster, to the company’s view of how to treat clients and employees, to Dan’s clear understanding of what the secret sauce is at World Cup Coffee. This episode offers an honest interview with a nice guy, who not only collaborates with up and coming roasters to help them get on their feet - he also offers a few lessons for any operator or small businessperson.
-
There is old saying in the world of finance – “Cash is king.” Not so for vending and micro market operators, where it is all about cashless payment, as consumers, particularly younger customers, rely on operators to offer quick and easy cashless payment solutions.
In this episode of Automatic Merchandiser’s Vending & OCS Nation, host Bob Tullio explores the many cashless payment providers that are available, focusing on the solutions they offer and how they provide operators with a competitive advantage. Listeners will learn about mainstream providers in addition to those who are focused on more targeted solutions.
For any operator who is considering their options regarding cashless payment, Tullio breaks down the technology, often complicated, in a way that will enhance your understanding of what is available. He gets some needed help and commentary from Evan Jarecki, co-founder & CEO of Gimme, as he interviews Bill Bartholic of Cantaloupe, Lisa Appelson and Pete Carmain of Nayax, Alan Munson of 365 Retail Markets, David Riddiford and Russell Wolfe of Apriva, Matt Birchard of PayRange, Wilf Martis of GrabScanGo, Ashley Hubler of Wittern Group and Terri Starnes-Bryant of Microtronic Cashless Solutions.
-
The coffee service industry has undergone quite a test of resilience since the start of the pandemic, not helped in the last year by the slow return of workers to the office. There was a clear sense of cautious optimism on display at the 2023 Coffee, Tea and Water Show (CTW) in Indianapolis – a sense that 2024 could be the start of better times ahead.
What do OCS operators need to do to succeed in 2024? When the question was asked on the convention floor at CTW, there was no shortage of opinions from operators and industry observers. In this edition of Automatic Merchandiser’s Vending & OCS Nation, host Bob Tullio brings those convention floor conversations directly to you, identifying trends and themes that are emerging from battle tested operators, with solid advice how to succeed in 2024.
Tullio hopes this podcast gives operators who listen a nugget of advice or insight that will help them point their business toward greater success in 2024.
-
J. Recher understands that convenience services operators can impact millions of people's lives each day. The impact can occur in a small way, through a cup of coffee, a salad or a snack. A closer look reveals that the impact being made by Recher and Five Star goes far beyond serving customers.
In this episode of Automatic Merchandiser’s Vending & OCS Nation podcast, host Bob Tullio talks to C. J. Recher, who serves Five Star Food Service as their vice president of marketing. Recher has another important role as well. He is co-founder of Feeding the Future, a non-profit organization that focuses on keeping kids from going hungry.
What Recher loves about the industry is that operators have such close contact with the end consumer. They can make a customer’s day much improved by providing the right products at the right time. “They're looking to us and the services that we provide to get them through their workday,” said Recher.
At the same time, his work with Feeding the Future is a gamechanger for kids who are unsure where their next meal is coming from, especially on weekends. This podcast is about Five Star’s advanced marketing strategy and a cause marketing program that has earned companywide buy-in.
-
Like so many of the industry’s leading coffee service companies, Associated Services was stung by the pandemic. Once the best market for OCS, the Bay Area suddenly became one of the worst, as the work at home movement stubbornly took hold.
In the latest episode of Automatic Merchandiser’s Vending & OCS Nation – the podcast for the convenience services industry - Tom Steuber, Justin Steuber and Kim Lenz reveal their formula for success at Associated Services. Host Bob Tullio explores multiple topics with the leadership team, including:
Strategies that are workingHow the company is adapting to the new normalHow selling convenience services has changedKey suppliers that are contributing to the company’s successLessons learned from a wrong turnHow Associated is leveraging technologyKey products that have made a difference – and some new ones to watchFor any operator, especially those who are adjusting to the slow recovery of traditional OCS, this podcast offers a blueprint on how to adapt, how to pivot and how to succeed – which is exactly what Associated has been doing for over 50 years.
- Laat meer zien