The Fresh Vending Podcast

What are smart fridges used for? And how much can they profit? 

Operators use smart fridges to solve many different problems, and therefore achieve varying levels of profitability. In this episode, we discuss different smart fridge applications, including

• Revenue Generating Microstore
• 24/7 Food Pantry
• Pure Amenity
• ...

We give a realistic range of revenue numbers based on data from our own clients at FoodSpot.

...

Smart vending is fairly new in the United States. In this episode, we discuss the five biggest mistakes operators make in researching, launching, and operating a smart vending solution.

Watch this episode on Youtube.

If you have questions about operating a smart vending technology, we'd love to hear from you! You can reach out at hello@launchfoodspot.com

For more information about smart fridge techn...

23% of college students face food insecurity. Many campus programs and resources are being established to help solve this issue but are mostly geared toward undergraduate students. What about adult learners coming back for education after years away?

Dr. Anita Hicks is the Associate Director of Auxiliary Services at Oakland University and has spent much of her research career studying food insecurity in adult learners. We ...

In this episode, we discuss how a fresh food smart vending solution needs three components to succeed: an app, the hardware, and a dashboard. We discuss how this looks in a smart fridge operation.

1. App: You need a brand-forward experience that connects you to your customers 24/7.
2. Hardware: You need a smart fridge that suits your brand image and unattended retail application (snacks/convenience store items/restaurant quality meals)...

There is an abundance of fresh food in the US – more than enough to end food insecurity – but there's a distribution problem. In this episode, Isaac and Nathan discuss...

• America's fresh food distribution problem
• anecdotes of food insecurity
• the difference between food security and food equity
• the 3 pillars of food equity
• how fresh food companies can address shrinkage, contribute to food equity, and increase their bottom l...

"Brain food" is a common term thrown around schools and workplaces, but what foods actually improve cognitive performance? In this episode of The Fresh Vending Podcast, a neuroscience junkie sits down with a professional chef to discuss some science-backed principles.

Isaac Wu and Nathan Downs discuss how, even though different people can see vastly different results from the same food regimen, the literature cle...

Coffee had 3 waves: it started in a can, moved to a cafe, and now it's a craft. We argue food vending has had 3 waves, too.

In this episode, we distinguish Third-Wave Vending – modern unattended fresh food solutions – from its predecessors. We discuss how this has opened unattended retail up to more operators, from large foodservice firms and mom-and-pop shops to farmers and fishermen.

If you're interest...

Nathan and Isaac discuss the 6 different retail smart fridge manufacturers in the US. They also discuss what attributes to look for in a fresh food retail smart fridge solution depending on your fresh food business, including size, design, data security, and more.

Learn more about fresh food microstores: https://www.launchfoodspot.com/blog

Get in touch: hello@launchfoodspot.com

Watch the episode here: htt...

FoodTech is popping up everywhere, but only some of will stick. In this episode, we discuss promising foodservice technology that is being adopted among institutions, food chains, and influencers.

Some of the FoodTech we discuss: 

• Mobile Ordering: Grubhub Campus 
• Robot Delivery: Grubhub & Starship
• Fresh Food Vending: Farmer's Fridge
• Robotics: Jamba + Blendid
• Robotics: Chowbotics
• Food Lockers: Automat and Apex
• Smart F...

How much does a smart vending platform cost?
Where can I go to research smart vending?
How do I pitch locations?

We discuss these questions and more in our latest episode of the Fresh Vending Podcast.

There are a dozen turnkey smart vending platforms in the U.S. Follow Nathan Downs and Isaac Wu on the Fresh Vending Podcast to learn if smart vending is right for you.

Sources in this episode:
Th...

In this episode, we discuss the long-term effects the pandemic is having on foodservice. We cover shifts in labor supply, digitization of brands, ghost kitchens, FoodTech, and other topics.

In an industry still recovering from the affects of COVID-19, operators are faced with heavier costs and larger shifts in consumer behavior than every before. Food operators are adopting new technologies, business models, and marketing ...

Join us as we discuss topics anyone should consider when opening a smart vending business:

• Why is the U.S. so slow to adopt smart vending?
• How much is it to operate an RFID fridge?
• How much revenue can a fridge generate?
• Does one need a whole fleet of smart fridges?

Watch the episode: https://youtu.be/y7GADbwjrB4
Learn more about smart vending: launchfoodspot.com
Reach out to get started in smart vending: sales@launchfo...

In this episode, we discuss what smart vending is and its importance in the modern foodservice industry. We outline the problem that smart vending solves and give examples of smart vending hardware and software. We also give some background on ourselves, and share why we both got into smart vending. 

Watch this episode: https://youtu.be/vNwhD7O_xyI

We'd love to hear from you! You can reach us at hello@launchf...