When you think of hotel vending machines, snacks and soda are probably among the first items that come to mind. However, over the past few years hoteliers have looked for ways to use vending as a way of enhancing their guests’ stay.
Take the Standard Hotel, for example. It introduced a swimsuit vending machine through a partnership with Quicksilver. This collaboration allowed guests to purchase swimsuits at any time, no longer confining them to the hours of the hotel store.
On a global scale, the Gold To Go vending machine in Abu Dhabi’s Emirates Palace Hotel vends bars of competitively-priced gold. The pricing is possible because the hotel is not paying an individual to staff the machine.
For those who enjoy a glass of bubbly, Las Vegas’ Mandarin Oriental hotel installed champagne vending machines in its bar and front desk areas. This makes it easier for guests to access champagne at all hours and avoid waiting in long lines at the bar.
While these are all inventive applications for serving hotel guests, we believe there is even greater potential for larger resorts to utilize vending machines as a way equip staff with the tools they need to do their jobs and to maintain the facilities. The introduction of vending machines and lockers in this capacity – as we’ve seen in other industries – not only increases efficiency, it also curbs costs by making it possible to more easily track inventory and usage.
Whether it’s improving a hotel’s guest experience or helping employees be more efficient, anything is possible when it comes to supply vending.
