Vending Machine Envy

the latest hi tech vending machine from Japan

 

 

Why can't we have cool vending machines like they do in Japan?  Several of the Jvloggers (Japan Video Bloggers in case you didn't know) I follow have done some posts about vending machines in Japan.  They are pretty cool, and offer a hell of a lot more choice than I can get in Canada.



availability

Is it a population density thing?  Is Canada just too big with smaller concentrations of people to place vending machines in convenient places?  Granted, I haven't seen any outside in a long time, but I have seen them in schools, hospitals, community centres and other places where either the service was needed, or somebody thought they could make a buck or two.  (Okay, I sometimes look at business pessimistically--It might be different if I were getting a cut)

Perhaps the powers that be just don't want to put vending machines on the streets where they could get vandalized.  I can understand, though not agree, with this argument.  And in reality, it has been a long time since I came across one outside and don't really miss them.  I don't like paying convenience store prices, but I have found enough alternatives that it doesn't matter so much.



Choices

However, for the ones that we do have, why can't they be cool like the ones they have in Japan?  Why do I have make do with four or five choices when most Japanese machines have more than 20 (hot and cold)?  The newest ones have considerably more.

It can't be a coin issue because Canadians have one and two dollar coins (the loonie and the twoonie).  The ones in Japan take bills--I even used one once that took the Japanese equivalent of a one hundred dollar bill.

Is it just wishful thinking?