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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes Advocate, 1991-03-27, Page 5Times -Advocate, March 27, 1991 PAPS Began as part-time Vending operation blossoms from competition By Ray Lewis EXETER - 10 years ago, Randy Gilfillan and his father, Bill, came qp with the idea of operating a vending company. The duo then proceeded to purchase a pop ma- chine and placed it in what they believed to be a fitting location. That was over 150 machines ago. Originally, Break -Time Vending Limited began as a part-time ven- ture for Randy. When another company invaded their territory by offering both pop and coffee, the Gilfillans were forced to make a decision. "We had to get into the vending business to compete or lose some of our pop business," says Randy. "We created the business, my dad's idea, bought one vending machine and just built up from there." Break -Time Vending Limited now owns and operates approxi- mately 160 machines. of different sizes and shapes. The company still deals predominantly with canned pop machines, but also owns hot drink and snack ma- chines. The company's territory current- ly spans from Wingham to Lon- don, and from Lake Huron as far east as Stratford. Because most of the accounts in the area are small, the operation demands , many. Every day, Randy spends nine hours travelling to a different re- gion, where he services machines on a strict, weekly basis. Supplies of chips, chocolate and truckloads of pop are stored in a private warehouse to permit the operation to keep up with demand. Randy estimates that last year he sold over 10,000 cases of pop and nearly 800 cases of chips. "Factories are down this year from last," says Gilfillan. "But it looks like it will get better." Some places don't seem to fluc- tuate and therefore help to offset problems in the factories. Institu- tions such as hospitals, nursing homes and high schools have helped to keep a balance. Although the operation is a jointly owned company with shareholders, Randy attends to its basic operation. He handles all or- dering, loading of machines, rolling of coins and minor repairs. When repairs are beyond his means, he pays Coke to service them. ch , t)rge, Break -Time Vending inhabits a new location, they pay some form of commission. Coins are collected each week and placed in ; a machine which sorts and counts them before they are trans- ferred to a coin roller. The ma- chines offer a dollar total and a commission is paid out to the ap- propriate establishment. "No, I don't count all of the quar- ters by hand," chuckles the Randy. "That's a week's job in itself." Some places don't receive a com- mission, instead choosing to be charged a lower price on the actual product. But most take some form of commission back which is usual- ly placed in an employees fund or something equivalent. In many ways, those who are using the ma- chines are geuing something back. At the high schools, for example, snack machine money goes to the Athletic Council to buy new equip- ment. "The kids are going to buy the stuff anyway," says Randy. "So you might as well have it available at the school where it will actually help them out." Much of the money invested in such an enterprise lies in equip- ment. The actual vending ma- chines are quite expensive with a new pop machine retailing for about 52000. Asked about damages, Randy says that incidents of violence oc- cur less often than you would ima- gine. "Most of the time a loss at the machine is human error," says the owner. "People use bent coins and put change in too fast or try to fool the machine by using something re- sembling change." In the case of Break -Time, be- cause of Randy's weekly schedule, he maintains a good relationship with customers who use his ma- chines. Rather than inflict abuse upon a machine, most will merely speak to him the next time around. Of some concern to the company is the move by pop companies to convert all pop cans to a twelve ounce size over the next few months. A procedure which will force Break -Time to eventually convert its 90 pop machines to hold the larger cans. Fortunately, Randy says its not a difficult procedure, but it will take time. Nowadays, there are vending ma- chines that will do virtually every- thing, from dispensing videotapes to even making french fries. Be- cause of the high volume required to make machines such as these profitable, Randy assures that he will stick to the basics: But there is one product that even he can't re- sist. Laughs Randy, "I'm going to be trying some machines with, hockey cards." ,Ratepayers Township of McGillivray 1st Installment of 1991 Taxes Due on or before Mar. 29/91 NOTICE: Municipal Office will be CLOSED Good Fri., March 29 and Easter Mon. April 1 Shirley Scott Clerk -Treasurer 23u 75AT ga •0 CHARTERED ACCOUNTANTS i Kime, Mills, Dunlop. Chartered Accountants Daniel B. Daum, B.A., M.Acc., C.A. Manager 412 Main St., P.O. Box 2405 Exeter, Ontario NOM 1S7 (519) 235-0345 Fax: (519) 235-3235 Stocking up - Randy Glifillan loads up one of his many vending machines. What began as a part-time business now demands nine hour days to cover a large region. Contract reveals ARC funding difficulties • John A.M. Noris CHARTERED ACCOUNTANT 497 Main Street South, Exeter, Ontario NOM 1S1 Tel: (519) 235-3240 Fax: (519) 235-3246 MANAGEMENT AND ACCOUNTING SERVICES FRED SIMMONS B.A. DASHWOOD - An agreement between South Huron Community Living and the Canadian Union for Public Employees local 2597 avert- ed a strike both at ARC Industries and a program for the mentally handicapped in Exeter. While negotiations between the two had broken down by the end of January, resulting in a no -board re- port, a new contract was signed in late February providing for both a wage increase and an "economic adjustment" to boost the salaries of the nine social work employees. "It's called 'bump money' from the Ministry of Social Services; said Gord Allan at CUPE, describ- ing the economic adjustment that hiked wages for level one vocation- al counselors by 3.5 percent and level twos by five percent. On top of that, the counselors re- ceived retroactive wage increases to October of 4.9 percent and 4.8 percent for levels one and two re- spectively. In October 1991, both will receive another four percent. The union had been aiming for the 5.5 percent funding increase the ministry awarded to the programs, but Community Living claimed in- creased expenses were preventing them from passing it all along to the employees. Soaring insurance premiums were cited as one cause. While the previous salary range for the workers was $18,455 to $23,592, it will be up to 520,333 to $25,951 by this fall. One of the main benefits of the contract, said Allan was the reduc- tion of work experience required to get to the top of the wage range. Munlclpalltles tell county speed limit Increases not feasible ZURICH - Several municipalities in Huron County including Zurich were told a transitional speed limit increase to 70 km/h on selected roads is not feasible. The proposed bylaw for speed changes outside of Zurich was re- jected . by the County of Huron Highways' Department because "Instead of taking four years for getting to the top of their range, they get there in three," said Allan. "They were kind of happy about that," he noted of the employees with two years experience who found they would be receiving top pay a year earlier than expected. The contract also included a mile- age allowance increase for those who make use of it. Allan said he was glad an agree- ment could be reached with the em- ployer, putting an end to what he described as hard feelings in Janu- ary. But he also said that negotia- tions revealed the difficult situation the government -funded agency has in trying to balance cost increases and wages against funding cut- backs. "I can understand the position of the employer too. It's a matter of "the funding...it's preuy tough. Personal and Business Tax Returns For appointment or pickup service Call (519) 235-1854 • AUCTIONEERS that is not enough "reasonable de- velopment" outside of the munic- pality's limits. A letter from county engineer De- nis Merrall stated drivers do not tend to pay attention to transition signs posted in a sudden transition from rural to urban centres. WE , CAN find the best A. John Hughes, C.D. Denture Therapist 'Box 839 37 Green Acres, Grand Bend. 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