https://www.japantimes.co.jp/business/2026/03/12/companies/declining-vending-machines/
Beverage companies have been forced to rethink the vending machine business. It’s under-performing as consumers are spoiled for options to purchase sodas, juices and green teas at more competitive prices through other sales channels, and as costs increase.
“Demand has struggled to grow amid price increases driven by rising raw material costs and consumers’ growing preference for saving money, while the industry is also confronting challenges such as higher equipment maintenance costs and labor shortages,”
According to the Japan Vending System Manufacturers Association, the number of vending machines for beverages in the country was 1.98 million as of December 2024, down from 2.2 million in December 2014.
In truth, the vending machine business has been a sunset industry since the 1990s, when plastic bottles started to become more widely used. The rise of convenience stores, where you can buy food along with drinks, also made drinks-only vending machines less of a draw.
In 1995, 48% of drinks were sold in Japan through vending machines, making it the largest sales channel, 18% at supermarkets and 15% at convenience stores, according to Inryo Soken, a beverage market research company. Now, 38% of drinks are sold through supermarkets, 23% at vending machines and 23% at convenience stores.The lack of cashless payment options is also making vending machines less attractive, especially for the younger generation….About 56% of 600 Tokyo vending machine users said they gave up buying drinks at vending machines when they found that cashless payment options weren’t available
Inryo Soken president Kazuhiro Miyashita pointed out that the only way to make the business work is for companies to cooperate with each other to lower operating costs, such as by having a shared system for restocking machines instead of each doing it on its own.
“It’s already happening,” Miyashita said, adding that discussions are ongoing among some companies.“Consumers who don’t want to buy drinks at list price are no longer vending machine users,” he said. “If prices top ¥200, demand for vending machines is likely to decline even more.”
Is Japan pulling the plug on vending machines? Although a marvel of old-school engineering and tech, they are falling victim to mundane economic pressures. Their omnipresence could someday be a thing of the past.
byu/jjrs injapannews
12 Comments
Nobody has any money. Raise wages and all of these issues magically disappear.
ETA: 38% of drinks are sold at Supermarkets. Where these drinks are often half the price.
And that Reborn as Vending Machine anime has new season out next month.
RIP Boxxo
They are expensive and people have no money. We had a few, still have one, but it’s no longer worth the while. The cost of electricity for cooling drinks in the burning sun of climate change and heating them up in winter eats up the profits to close to zilch.
I’m sure the people filling the machines know the numbers better than I do, but even taking rising costs into consideration, there just seems to be a narrowing variety of drinks in every machine. There doesn’t need to be three slots of Georgia Latte in every frickin machine or two slots of Bikkle in every Suntory. When I am in the mood for a certain drink I can guarantee I will find a machine with 18 slots for beverages but only 8 unique beverages and nothing I want to drink.
Prices aren’t worth it. Why buy a pocari sweat from a jihanki for 170 when you can walk to a conbini and get it for like 120-130?
Not in Japan, but I used to live in South Korea for a while and in the quiet summer night of the countryside, coming across a lone single vending machine under a flickering street light with cold water stocked was a good memory for me.
They’re too expensive now. I think last month I got something from one because I wanted something warm to drink. But I was shocked how even the can sizes shrunk.
Have heard the new 500 yen coin requires an update to older machines that is causing the older operators to step back and decide to just not upgrade because the business doesn’t work as well.
I’ve come to enjoy buying a Dr Pepper from a machine on the street.
Have Japan moved on from coins and cash? Most vending machines in the UK accept card payments and the number of vending machine sales using card jas increased as well. Vending is still very much profitable in the UK.
Narita airport terminal 1 all the machines have the same selection what are they thinking 🤔 the line at 7/11 was massive probably to get more choice of beverage.
new ¥500 coin and ¥1000 notes require upgrades, cashless pay requires expensive infrastructure upgrades (and connectivity for machines, even when ‘read’ peer to peer by an operator – that’s likely going to be a breaking point for most operators who were already on the line of breaking even.