august2024 - 8

OCS UPDATE
Beyond pantry service:
Is it time to jump on
the next big thing?
An increasing number of OCS operators have added pantry service
to their offerings, especially since office population growth is slow
and steady at best. What's next?
by Bob Tullio
AS AN OPERATOR, MY COMPANY
did everything over the years - and
I mean everything. Jukeboxes, pool
tables, pinball, video games, cranes,
darts, pay telephones, cigarette
machines, snack vending, beverage
vending, food vending, micro
markets, point-of-use water, pantry
service and, of course, the one channel
that truly propelled us to success:
coffee service. Admittedly, it took
us a while to find our niche. Maybe
some of you can relate.
Along the way, I ran into
operators who were stubborn about
what they would and would not do.
The vending operators who refused
to think about coffee service because
" I hate the idea of receivables. " Or
the many OCS operators who would
ask me to service the vending in
their accounts because " I don't want
the hassle of dealing with coin,
cash, repairs and all those single
products. " Without naming names,
on both the vending and OCS side,
these were major players, most of
whom are still around today.
SAYING YES
Things have changed. As Mark Stein
of Mark Vend in Chicago explained,
" We are a company that says 'yes,'
and we have the infrastructure, so we
are always chomping at the bit to do
more for our customers, especially
if it is something that will truly meet
their needs, " he said.
Clearly, OCS operators are
learning to say yes. But, maybe it
won't matter that much because OCS
will come back strong as the office
population grows. Stein expressed
the sentiment of every operator I
have spoken to about the state of the
office workforce: " It is continuing to
trend in a positive direction, but not
as quickly as we would like to see. "
WORK FROM HOME:
SOME POSITIVE NEWS
An April 2024 study by USA Today
provided the following key statistics,
trends and attitudes relating to
working from home:
" Just over half (51%) of respondents
also said their company
requires some or all employees to
be in the office. 39% of respondents
said this would be the
case for their organizations by
the end of 2024 while only 8%
planned for this to happen by
2025 and beyond. Out of responTetiana
Mykhailenko / iStock / Getty Images
8 Automatic Merchandiser * August 2024

august2024

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of august2024

Editor's Note – Leaning into the convenience services industry
Industry News
OCS Update – Beyond pantry service: Is it time to jump on the next big thing?
Success Story – A focus on micro markets, fresh food and strong customer service help Buffalo Strive thrive
An operator's guide to smart market options
Technology boom adds smart tools for operators
Product Focus
Social Hubs
august2024 - CoverTip1
august2024 - CoverTip2
august2024 - 1
august2024 - 2
august2024 - 3
august2024 - 4
august2024 - Editor's Note – Leaning into the convenience services industry
august2024 - Industry News
august2024 - 7
august2024 - OCS Update – Beyond pantry service: Is it time to jump on the next big thing?
august2024 - 9
august2024 - 10
august2024 - 11
august2024 - Success Story – A focus on micro markets, fresh food and strong customer service help Buffalo Strive thrive
august2024 - 13
august2024 - 14
august2024 - 15
august2024 - 16
august2024 - 17
august2024 - 18
august2024 - 19
august2024 - An operator's guide to smart market options
august2024 - 21
august2024 - 22
august2024 - 23
august2024 - 24
august2024 - 25
august2024 - Technology boom adds smart tools for operators
august2024 - 27
august2024 - 28
august2024 - 29
august2024 - Product Focus
august2024 - 31
august2024 - 32
august2024 - 33
august2024 - Social Hubs
august2024 - 35
august2024 - 36
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