The food distributor market - Italy

1.1 Definition and presentation

The food vending machine (or vending machine) market refers to the business of selling beverages and snacks through vending machines. The most common machines are vending machines for hot beverages such as coffee and hot chocolate, but there are also vending machines for cold beverages, fruits, and snacks.

The global market is relatively mature: an annual growth rate of 1.3 percent is expected between 2020 and 2027. This growth will be driven mainly by developing countries and the urbanization process that is affecting them.

The Italian food vending market is one of the most developed and cutting-edge within the European landscape. Also in terms of consumption, Italians are one of the populations that make greater use of these devices, especially in contexts such as offices, industries, schools and universities.

Hot beverages turn out to be the products most consumed by vending machine users and, in particular, coffee is the product with the highest sales volumes in this market, especially by virtue of the great attachment that the Italian population turns out to possess toward this beverage. As for the snack segment, chocolate-based snacks continue to remain the most popular.

In spite of this, the Italian deli food vending market is undergoing a strong process of diversification of the food offer: alongside the classic beverages that can be purchased through this instrument, there is a growing variety of snacks as well as fresh products (pizzas, sandwiches, sandwiches), the preservation of which is allowed by appropriate temperatures inside the vending machines.

A very important trend emerging in the Italian food vending market is that of greater attention on the part of the operator and manufacturer of the device to the needs of the end consumer. This dynamic has resulted in the market distribution of devices that are easier to use and equipped with faster and more accessible payment mechanisms.

1.2 The global market

The global size of the retail vending machine market has been estimated at $**.** billion in **** and is expected to register a compound annual growth rate (***) of about **.* percent from **** to ****, reaching $*** billion.

Consumers' fast-paced lifestyles are boosting product sales through vending machines. The industry's growth can also be attributed to the ...

1.3 The Italian market

Italian vending, with more than *** thousand machines installed, is the most important food vending chain in Europe, of which Italy is a leader in production and and export.

Theyear **** constituted theyear of recovery, in which the sector showed positive signs compared to ****, the recovery was noticeable, with a growth of **.**%.

In ...

1.4 Import-Export

Regarding foreign trade, reference is made to commodity code HS:****, which refers to vending machines for goods (***), including currency changers. This is a broader category than food vending machines, however, the latter account for a considerable share.

As mentioned earlier,Italy is the European leader in theexport of Vending Machines. About ...

1.5 The impact of Covid-19

The pandemic due to covid-** and related restrictions had a significant impact on the vending machine industry, banning access to places that house such devices, such as offices and schools.

In April ****, the industry went as far as losing as much as ** percent of its sales, and after a brief recovery, ...

2.1 Demand in Italy

In order to better characterize the demand for vending machines, separate consumption for different product categories is reported.

Regarding the macrocategories of goods found in different food vending machines, the main one concerns hot beverages, which account for **% of total consumption. This is followed by cold drinks with **%, while snacks represent ...

2.2 Demand drivers

The following are the main drivers that stimulate demand for vending machines.

Break area: vending machines allow the creation of a break area in any place, whether it is at school or in a company office. Such an area also can provide a space for sharing and interacting with other ...

2.3 The geographical distribution of demand

In order to get an overview of how the demand for food vending machines may be distributed, reference is made to the average monthly household expenditure in Food and non-alcoholic beverages, broken down in the different Italian regions.

Spending values seem to be rather homogeneous, with the exception of Sardinia (***).

These ...

2.4 New trends in demand

Digital and contactless payments

The year **** saw the continued rise of digital and contactless payments in vending machines, a trend accelerated by the COVID-** pandemic. Consumer preference for payment methods that reduce physical touch points and offer greater convenience has become predominant.

ATMs have rapidly integrated these technologies, offering payment solutions ...

3.1 The market structure

Manufacturers of vending machines

The analysis of the market structure related to vending machines is carried out on the basis of data belonging to the category related to ATECO code **.**.* (***), as far as manufacturers are concerned. Specifically, three different quantities are considered: number of active enterprises, number of employees, legal form ...

3.2 The value chain

The value chain of the vending machine market can be broken down into several key stages, each of which contributes to the overall functioning of the market. An explanatory representation is given below.

3.3 The main actors in management activity

The following are the main players in Italy involved in the management of vending machines, belonging to ATECO code **.**.**.

IVS Italia spa: part of the IVS Group, is a major player in the foodservice sector, especially in the beverage and snack vending machine market. it is the leading company in Italy ...

3.4 The main actors

The following are the main companies involved in the production of vending machines.

Evoca spa: a leading international company in the manufacture and sale of professional coffee machines and vending machines for hot, cold and snack drinks. The company, based in Italy, is renowned for its wide range of products that ...

4.1 Supply analysis

Vending machines (***) are devices that make both products and services available to users on demand, subject to payment by cash, prepaid card or credit card. The great advantage of such machines is that they are available ** hours a day and any day of the year.

Vending is also a growing business ...

4.3 New supply trends

Data analytics for supply optimization

The use of data analytics is becoming essential for customizing product assortment, enabling operators to tailor supply according to consumer preferences and monitor market trends.

The sector related to vending in recent years, has undergone a real technological evolution, introducing, for example, telemetry, a system that ...

5.1 The legislation

Italian and European regulations governing food vending machines focus onfood safety andhygiene, as well as the responsibility of food business operators .

At the European level, Regulation (***) No. ***/** of April **, **** on the hygiene of foodstuffs establishes the primary responsibility of food business operators in ensuring food safety. This regulation imposes detailed rules ...

6.1 Segmentation

• EVOCA S.P.A
• EVOCA S.P.A
• Rheavendors industries spa
• Bianchi Industry spa
• Saga Coffee spa
• IVS Italia spa
• Gruppo Argenta spa
• Sogedai spa
• Gruppo Illiria spa