Business Idea need help and suggestions

[dragonwalker]

I currently work a 8-5 job with a hybrid schedule where I can work from home 3 days a week and allows me some flexibility to do other things while at home. I live in the Los Angeles area, I travel between the areas just east of downtown LA to the areas north of LA.

I was thinking of a side hustle to supplement my income. Most of my income is from my regular work, I make under 15K from rental and about $10K from investments. I've never started a business but have some family that have.

My idea is setting up a vending machine. I've been doing some research online and spoke to some machine salespeople/consultant but the most difficult part is finding a location or route as it's known. I wanted to get some more objective advice about what I had in mind for how to go about this.

Although I've looked into the type of area that I should seek out, I'm, not confident of making the right call for setting one up and lack any experience doing it. If I were to pursue this, I'm leaning towards purchasing a route where at most there would be 1-2 machines at one location. My idea was to start small. I talked to one consultant where I suggested a starting budget around $5K would be reasonable. Do any of you have any business advice specifically for getting into vending machines? I'd like to see how it goes and then decide where to go from there.

[GilesMM]

Vending machines obviously make money for someone, but not sure what the margins are like.  I imagine if you have a lot of them and some low-paid workers to stock and repair them it could work out as I'm guessing competition is high and margins low.  What does the machine cost? How much revenue will one bring in?  What will it cost to keep it stock and operating?  What about vandalism?

[dragonwalker]

The machine prices vary by a wide margin however a simple drink only machine, from a reliable manufacturer, that has been refurbished by a reputable dealer is about $1500. My thought however was to buy a machine already setup at a site. Research online suggests that the amount I should expect to pay would be around 12 months of gross from the machine + cost of machine. For if a machine grosses $500/month than the route would be about $7500 for example. $500 is a higher number but possible.

[Villanelle]

If one machine might cost around $7500, how is your starting budget $5000?

Also, are you planning on doing the restocking yourself?  Would your work travel allow you enough flexibility in time, but also reliability in route timing (how often you'll be traveling by certain locations) that you could restock machines as part of your work driving?  IOW, could you stop at your vending location and restock in between work calls?  (And would your vehicle allow this?)

[dragonwalker]

If one machine might cost around $7500, how is your starting budget $5000?

Also, are you planning on doing the restocking yourself?  Would your work travel allow you enough flexibility in time, but also reliability in route timing (how often you'll be traveling by certain locations) that you could restock machines as part of your work driving?  IOW, could you stop at your vending location and restock in between work calls?  (And would your vehicle allow this?)

The $7500 figure was derived using $500/month as an example and being generous on the cost of the machine. Many routes payout far less than that so $5K is possible. I would be planning to do restocking myself. I provided my schedule to indicate the time I have generally, depending on where it's located it would be possible to do so during these hours. Assuming 1 location than my car would be enough.

[SeattleCPA]

I currently work a 8-5 job with a hybrid schedule where I can work from home 3 days a week and allows me some flexibility to do other things while at home. I live in the Los Angeles area, I travel between the areas just east of downtown LA to the areas north of LA.

I was thinking of a side hustle to supplement my income. Most of my income is from my regular work, I make under 15K from rental and about $10K from investments. I've never started a business but have some family that have.

My idea is setting up a vending machine. I've been doing some research online and spoke to some machine salespeople/consultant but the most difficult part is finding a location or route as it's known. I wanted to get some more objective advice about what I had in mind for how to go about this.

Although I've looked into the type of area that I should seek out, I'm, not confident of making the right call for setting one up and lack any experience doing it. If I were to pursue this, I'm leaning towards purchasing a route where at most there would be 1-2 machines at one location. My idea was to start small. I talked to one consultant where I suggested a starting budget around $5K would be reasonable. Do any of you have any business advice specifically for getting into vending machines? I'd like to see how it goes and then decide where to go from there.

Can I throw out a different point of view? And let me say that I've spent nearly my entire adult life working in small businesses and more than half my adult life helping small businesses.

I would think the side hustle idea is not optimal. Side hustles almost by their nature lack economy of scale. They distract and defocus. The low barrier to entry also suggests you won't really ever make much money. If there's money to be made in the category, someone who's full-time makes the money. Maybe in the space you're considering, the vending machine manufacturer, I don't know.

My advice as an alternative would be to figure out whatever you need to do on a personal level to make say $20K more in your current job or current field. Make that the investment you consider. You already have lots of tacit knowledge about that opportunity. You will be focusing on one thing. You'll get synergies with your current job. You're also likely to get a promotion or a raise just because your peers won't be thinking this way.

If the space you're in truly has zero opportunity to expand or grow? I'd look for a new space and as your "secret mission" work on launching version 2.0 of your career or vocation. Maybe that's a business you own. But you don't go part-time. Go all in.

[ChpBstrd]

My side gig threshold is set by the local plasma donation center, which will pay you about $70 for 2h of your time, so $35/hour. You can earn maybe $140/week if you don't max out the opportunity, so $7,280 per 52 week year to sit in a recliner and read, watch a movie, or listen to an audio book.

Any idea that can't reliably beat that isn't worth my time, because I already don't sell plasma.

[GilesMM]

My side gig threshold is set by the local plasma donation center, which will pay you about $70 for 2h of your time, so $35/hour. You can earn maybe $140/week if you don't max out the opportunity, so $7,280 per 52 week year to sit in a recliner and read, watch a movie, or listen to an audio book.

Any idea that can't reliably beat that isn't worth my time, because I already don't sell plasma.

I like this idea. And then maybe blow all $7K on a splurge like a fancy electric bike.  Or first class trip to Australia or Asia.