Europe Smart Vending Machine Market

Europe Smart Vending Machine Market Overview

The Europe Smart Vending Machine Market is expected to cross USD 25 billion by 2025. A smart vending machine is an advanced vending machine that not only dispenses items but also engages shoppers using touch screen controls, video, audio, aroma, customer interaction, gestures, and cashless payment. Typically, a smart vending machine dispenses items such as packaged food, beverages, and tobacco products. 

Recent Developments

In June 2018, in an effort to establish and expand its offline presence, grocery platform BigBasket was in talks to acquire a controlling stake in the Kwik24 smart vending machine startup, according to two people familiar with the matter. The development comes after the Alibaba-backed company launched a pilot project with Kwik24 to implement smart vending machines in five apartment buildings in Bengaluru.

Almost seven months after raising $ 300 million from Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., online grocery store Bigbasket said it had acquired three startups, which will help it offer subscription-based services and allow customers to buy commodities through vending machines. Bigbasket has acquired two startups: Bengaluru-based Morning Cart and RainCan, a Pune-based milk subscription platform, it said today in a statement. It also bought a controlling stake in the Kwik 24 cloud-connected smart vending machine platform, according to the statement.

365 Retail Markets has acquired 'smart store' technology company Stockwell for an undisclosed figure as the company aims to improve its underserved retail offering. Based in Oakland, California, Stockwell pioneered an unattended retail solution that uses artificial intelligence, machine learning, and computer vision to create fully-managed and customizable "smart stores" for apartments, offices, hotels, and similar venues.

Fastenal Co., Winona, MN, purchased certain assets of Apex Industrial Technologies on March 30, according to an 8-K filed by the company. Over the past 12 years, Apex has supplied Fastenal with thousands of industrial vending machines, and the dealer is widely regarded as the leader in the use of this on-site sales tool at industrial and commercial sites. 

Cleveland-based Vendors Exchange International acquired American Vending Machine, according to a Vending Times report. The combination of the companies and the additional operational site will allow Vendors Exchange to better serve its customers by generating shorter lead times and more profitable solutions. AVM's St. Louis plant will provide additional manufacturing space and a highly skilled workforce.

N&W Global Vending S.p.A. announced that it had completed the acquisition of Saeco Vending S.p.A. The granting of licenses for the use of the well-known brands Saeco and Gaggia in the professional coffee machine market will allow N&W to grow significantly in the Office Coffee Service (OCS) segment and strengthen its Vending & Ho .Re.Ca. This will accelerate its commercial development in strategic markets such as Central Europe, Eastern Europe, and Asia.

Luckin Coffee has grown at a rapid pace as it aims to steal market share from Starbucks, its main competitor. Unmanned coffee vending machines are another way to further saturate the market, including key places where busy people need a caffeine boost, such as airports and office buildings. 

Market Drivers and Restraints:

The advent of 5G technology is one of the main growth drivers of the global smart vending machine market. Additionally, 5G networks have increased capacity to support the growth of emerging digital applications, including smart cities, autonomous vehicles, and the Internet of Things (IoT). 5G networks also play an important role in a wide range of applications for advanced manufacturing, smart retail, and connected healthcare. These are some factors that are expected to support the growth of the target market during the forecast period. The increasing use of the Internet and the increasing adoption of IoT-based hardware and software components in production units in various industries, including healthcare, retail, oil, and gas, automotive, etc., are expected for monitoring and other purposes and drive the growth of the target market. Many bakery and fast food products need warm environments to serve fresh food to their customers. Hot vending machines allow fast food stores to maintain such environments. The growing customer base at food outlets encourages store owners to install automated technologies to serve their products efficiently. Vending machines help restaurant staff reduce wait times and deliver food products through distribution channels, allowing them to serve customers quickly. Various market players are dedicated to meeting these customers' demands by offering advanced machines specially designed for hot and cold items. However, the high cost of smart vending machines along with the high cost of maintenance and energy consumption are among the key factors that may hamper the growth of the global smart vending machine market during the forecast period. Furthermore, vending machines achieve nominal margins compared to other distribution channels.

Market Segmentation

The smart vending machine market is segmented by type, application, technology, and region. The smart vending machine market is segmented into beverages, snacks, commodities, and others by type. According to the application, the market for smart vending machines is segmented into fast-food restaurants, shopping malls, retail stores, public transportation, airports, hospitals, hotels, train stations, schools, and business centers. By technology, the market for smart vending machines is segmented into cashless systems, telemetry systems, and voice recognition.

Impact of covid-19 on Europe Smart Vending Machine Market

With the blockade imposed by governments due to the COVID-19 pandemic, restaurants, food stores, and catering companies have been closed, affecting equipment manufacturers' sales. Europe smart vending machine market key players had faced difficulties during the time of lockdown in the first half of 2020. As all the malls, offices, and other companies have been closed for a while, the demand for smart vending machines has come down. From the unlock guidelines in the last months of 2020, the market shares started to increase at double rate. 

Regional Analysis

The Market for Europe Smart Vending Machine has been classified on the basis of geography to offer a clear understanding of the market. The Europe Smart Vending Machine Market has been divided into the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, and the rest of Europe. The European market is expected to account for the second-highest market share in terms of revenue during the forecast period due to consumers' growing preference for smart payment options, including credit cards, debit cards, credit card applications, mobile wallets, online transactions, etc. Germany's smart vending machine market holds the highest shares in the region, whereas the UK smart vending machine market is expected to have the highest CAGR. 

Leading Company

Fresh Healthy Vending International had the largest share of the Europe Smart Vending Machine Market in terms of sales revenue in 2021.

Key Players

The Europe Smart Vending Machine Market is concentrated with well-established players. Key players in the Europe Smart Vending Machine Market include N&W Europe Vending S.p.A., Fresh Healthy Vending International, Bianchi Vending Group S.p.A, Crane Co. Ltd., Azkoyen Group, Royal Vendors, and Fuji Electric.