Putting the ‘cool' into vending!

Modern life is thirsty work and major brands are using the vending industry to reach the consumer in any location, at any time. As the sun begins to shine on the UK, cool impulse buys are set to rocket, keeping the industry buoyant in an increasingly difficult economic climate.

Published: 11 May, 2009

Back in 1999, John Burnett identified a ‘phenomenal' rise in the number of soft drinks consumed in the UK in the 30 years before his ground breaking study, Liquid Pleasures - A social History of Drinks in Modern Britain, hit all good book shelves. Although many commercial sugar-based beverages were first developed around the mid-to late nineteenth century, it was not until the 1960s and the initial mass popularity of Coca Cola that cold, non-alcoholic, bottled drinks really took hold. By 1995 around 20% of all drinks bought in this country were soft drinks, he said. Not bad for a nation of confirmed tea lovers. This, according to Burnett, represented a ‘cold drinks revolution' comparable to the ‘hot beverages revolution' of the late 17th century when Britain first began importing tea.

In the early days of the trade, tea was the preserve of the wealthy, but increasing distribution made it widely accessible and soon it was on offer in households up and down the country. Despite being one of the last countries in Europe to discover it, tea drinking is now part of our national identity - offering calm in a crisis and a warm welcome to guests. Similarly, when Coca Cola exploded onto the mass- market scene it too became the ultimate in cool, with slogans like: "It's the real thing" making it an instant hit. 40 years on and consumers up and down the country regularly drink ‘coke' in bars and restaurants without knowing if their glass of cold, brown, bubbly liquid has been made by the brand or not. Coca Cola has fused itself so cleverly with the consumer unconscious that many of us fail to separate the brand from its main ingredients - now part of popular culture, it's hard to imagine life without it.

The rise and rise of the fizzy drink

Jacob's Pharmacy of Atlanta, Georgia, became the debut site for Coca-Cola in 1886 (History of Soft Drinks www.essortment.com). In the same year another favourite, Dr Pepper was also brought to market, followed by Pepsi-Cola in 1903. Although sold originally as pharmaceutical products, these flavoured carbonated drinks soon had mass appeal. In 1904, Dr Pepper was introduced to 20 million people attending the 1904 World Fair in St. Louis. Here, hamburgers, hot dog buns and ice cream cones also made a big impression, soon creating what is now commonly known as ‘the diner'. Before long, the desire for fast-food eateries had spread to UK shores too, with some of the biggest brands shaping consumer behaviour forevermore.

World War I nearly shut down the fast growing cold drinks industry, as the US Food Administration deemed it inessential in the face of severe sugar shortages. Prohibition however, was to be its saving grace: "Once hard liquor was no longer legally available, consumers that desired a flavoured drink increasingly chose these carbonated beverages. In addition, the advent of six-packs of bottled sodas helped the drink find a place at home, as opposed to only being consumed at the local pharmacy or restaurant," continues www.essortment.com in its potted history.

When prohibition ended, 7 UP launched itself as a mixer for spirits, while Coca-Cola began marketing a new fountain mixer that combined the syrup and water automatically, for a more consistent flavour. Pepsi-Cola meanwhile, began selling in 12-ounce bottles, as opposed to the 6- and 8-ounce bottles preferred by the competition, promoting itself therefore as the money saving option - vital in the economic climate of the time.

Diet culture

With the media beginning to project ideas of perfection, individuals were becoming more and more concerned with their size and shape than ever before. The 1960s, therefore, saw the advent of the diet drink; in 1962, Diet-Rite Cola, from the Royal Crown Company was the first drink of its kind to be sold nationwide in the US, says www.essortment.com. Coca-Cola introduced Tab the following year, with Diet Pepsi going on the market in 1965. In the 1980s, manufacturers started using aspartame, under the trade name Nutra-Sweet in efforts to create a more natural taste for the diet drink sector.

According to the same research, the 1980s also saw caffeine-free versions of soft drinks become popular, while in the 1990s clear versions enjoyed a brief spell of success too. Fruit juice based soft drinks also increased in popularity and today there are a plethora of brands on the market, following consumer calls for healthier cold drink options that are not just low in fat, but good for you too.

Soft drinks today

Consumers are always looking for new tastes and formats for soft drinks, innovation therefore is key to success says the British Soft Drinks Association. The main categories of soft drink products are carbonates, fruit juices, dilutables, still and juice drinks and bottled waters, it adds. Health issues and changing lifestyles have influenced shifts in UK consumption, most significantly a shift from regular variants to low calorie and no added sugar variants, it claims. Despite a steady market share decline, the carbonated drink sector is still the largest category of soft drink, representing 42%. Colas are the most popular flavours for carbonated drinks, with fruit flavours such as lemon and orange following. However, the biggest change in the carbonated sector has been in the growth of low and zero sugar variants, as manufacturers continue to meet the demands of health conscious consumers, insists the Association.

Despite one of the worst summers on record, the 2008 Britvic Soft Drinks Report seems to agree, highlighting four major trends shaping the food and drink industry: health and wellbeing, indulgence, ethical values and convenience. New product innovations that address consumers on more than one of these levels performed particularly well in 2007, found the report - 70 per cent of the top ten soft drink innovations in 2007 tapped into more than one of the four key trends with 18 of the top 20 offering a perceived health benefit.

Why vending is still the cooler option

The most popular type of vendor in the United States is the cold canned soft drink machine, which vends the traditional 12 oz (355 ml) aluminum can of sodas and soft drinks (www.answers.com).

Technological improvements to wireless machine monitoring systems in early 2001 allowed companies to use the Internet as a means of monitoring and maintaining remote vending sites, making them more reliable distribution channels for brands and sources of retail for consumers. Handheld computers have also become increasingly popular as a way to capture sales and stock data directly from machines, so there is never any need for your favourite drink to run out.

The introduction of cashless payment systems meanwhile, has made purchasing drinks from vending machines that much easier, boosting profits and maximising sales, while providing follow up marketing opportunities for brands in the collection of data.

The last few years has seen the leaders in soft drink vending machine manufacturing invest heavily in the development of machines designed specifically for the soft drinks industry. The emphasis is now on full product visibility with glass-fronted machines replacing the closed front kind that graphically illustrate products, making impulse purchases much more likely.

Consumers like to be able to see what they are buying and by thinking with a retailer's mindset - in terms of effective merchandising and ease of payment - cool vending has become an increasingly popular means of purchase for consumers on the go.

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