AI plays a key role in convenience services post-COVID rebound “Fresh Food, No Kitchen Required” was how Aramark Refreshments greeted visitors at Imagination Way, the entry point at the NAMA 2026 trade show in Los Angeles last week. That theme carried itself throughout the Los Angeles Convention Center as attendees discovered the myriad ways unattended retail technology enables… Read More »
NAMA Show 2026 in Los Angeles Has there ever been a more exciting time to be in the convenience services industry? Take a look at the education schedule for NAMA 2026 at the Los Angeles Convention Center, April 22-24. The capabilities introduced by AI and related technologies have unleashed extensive possibilities for delivering white glove quality service in… Read More »
How Vending is Driving Electronic Payments The unattended retail sector—spanning vending machines, micro markets, and smart stores—has rapidly evolved into a sophisticated, high-value retail channel powered by digital payments and automation. In vending automation, the big majority of cash payments are for small dollar items. And that is where the change is coming. Cashless payments removed the industry’s… Read More »
Photo provided by the National Retail Federation. NRF Big Show 2026 Report One would be guilty of hyperbole to say that the NRF Big Show in New York City has become the largest self-service technology show in the world. But a veteran attendee can certainly say the number of unattended service exhibits has surged every year, driven by… Read More »
Vending Kiosks and AI Anthropic’s AI vending test draws boos, but tech evolution will bring change. Wonderful article and insight by Elliot Maras on Retail Automation — Will AI replace traditional vending businesses? A recent blog on this topic by Anthropic, a San Francisco based AI systems provider and researcher, has sparked a harsh riposte from the business and… Read More »
365 Retail Markets Buys Cantaloupe From RetailSystems June 2025 — Cantaloupe, Inc., a prominent player in the vending and payment solutions industry, has announced its acquisition by 365 Retail Markets in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $848 million. This strategic move is expected to enhance growth opportunities for both companies. Key Details Terms: Cantaloupe shareholders will receive $11.20 per share, representing a 34%… Read More »
Vending Automation at NAMA The future of unattended retail was on full display last week at the Las Vegas Convention Center. And the take-home for the approximately 5,200 attendees at the three-day NAMA Show was that the future has already arrived, thanks to the rapid pace of self-service technology and the consumer’s rising acceptance of self-service. We were… Read More »
Don’t miss NAMA 2025 May 7-9: Convenience Service Delivered Editor’s Note: Be sure and visit Crane CPI in #2331, DPL Wireless in #1874, Actineon in 2067, and Pyramid in 2249 while at the show. Zhilai is in 2640 (pizza vending machine). 365 Markets has a HUGE booth. By Elliot Maras Keeping up with today’s technology-savvy consumer is not… Read More »
Gatwick Vending Kiosk From Evoke Creative — New self-service kiosks installed at Gatwick Airport rail station to improve the customer experience at this busy station. London, 28 June 2021 – Worldline [Euronext: WLN], the European leader in the payments and transactional services industry Worldline and Evoke Creative have combined their expertise in rail ticketing solutions and kiosk design… Read More »
Excerpt from Canadian Vending magazine May 2020 — Kiosk sales are expected to accelerate post-pandemic, due to affordability of its footprint and sanitary interface, when compared to a crowded store. Take-Aways Kiosks are safer than dealing with people Vending machines sell tangible goods Customers like to customize orders, and preferably via machine than person. Business orders for self-service… Read More »
Source: www.jpopforum.net
What’s the story about Snap’s new Snapbot vending machines selling Spectacles? This question was originally answered on Quora by Brian Roemmele.
Source: www.forbes.com
Good read