Vending machine business readies to ride on q-comm growth

Alongside quick commerce, another trend gaining traction is vending machines dispensing items like snacks, beverages, fresh food, hygiene products and even tech accessories.
Market observers say that the growth of these two trends is interconnected. While quick commerce caters to densely populated residential areas, vending machines capture the out-of-home (OOH) market.

Rising adoption of UPI, changing consumer behaviour and improved supply chain management—factors driving quick commerce—are also expected to fuel the growth of vending machines over the next 3-4 years, according to analysts.

Vikram Gupta, founder and managing partner of IvyCap Ventures, believes the vending machine market is growing at 15-20% annually and could reach between Rs 4,000 – Rs 5,000 crore in the next three to four years. “Currently, the market is somewhere around Rs 1,000 – Rs 1,200 crore in terms of gross revenues that these vending machines generate across all locations. But it is growing,” he told FE.

Four months ago, Adani Digital Labs launched its “TRY ME” vending machine in a Bengaluru mall. Meanwhile, BigBasket is scaling its vending machine business, BBInstant, with over 3,000 machines already deployed across major metros, predominantly in corporate offices.

“The vending business offers a unique opportunity to tap into the future of e-grocery,” a BigBasket spokesperson told FE. The company believes that advancements in IoT and AI driving snack vending will unlock even greater opportunities for the vending industry.

Currently, the market size for snack vending is about one-third that of coffee vending. There are around 150,000 coffee vending machines across India, compared to just 45,000 for snacks vending. “This is where we aim to take the lead and be at the forefront of the vending revolution in India,” the spokesperson added.

Daalchini, a vending machine startup backed by Artha Venture Fund and Unicorn India Ventures, has installed over 2,500 vending machines across 70+ cities, including Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Pune, Bengaluru, Chennai and Hyderabad. The startup serves more than 500 clients, including major corporations such as Reliance, Adani, Tata, Amazon, IBM and NITI Aayog.

“Earlier models of vending machines were purely coin-based or required exact cash, which limited their usability in a market like India. But the landscape is changing with the increasing acceptance of digital payments, QR codes, UPI, and advancements in IoT technologies,” said Prerna Kalra, CEO and co-founder of Daalchini Technologies.

Most startups in this space primarily serve corporate offices, schools, colleges, hotels, hospitals, factories, malls, metro stations, petrol stations and ATMs.

BigBasket sees an opportunity to scale its corporate business with the “return to office” trend and the rapid expansion of quick commerce. “There is a strong demand for a sophisticated, tech-driven solution to address snacking needs in corporate offices. This is where our vending solution becomes a key part of the strategy,” company’s spokesperson said.

India’s private sector employs more than 40 million people, and there are 30 million students in higher education, forming a significant target base that leaves home for work or study almost every day. “China and Japan have one vending machine for every 100 and 25 people, respectively. While Japan has five million vending machines, India is yet to reach even one-tenth of this. Digital rails will change this sooner,” said Bhaskar Majumdar, managing partner at Unicorn India Ventures.

Unlike quick commerce, which requires a delivery rider and some wait time, vending machines provide immediate access to products in high-traffic areas, offering convenience without delivery delays or fees. Experts believe this model complements quick commerce by catering to immediate, on-the-go needs.“I think the adoption will happen product category-wise. Products that need temperature control or perish faster will face challenges initially, but packaged products with longer shelf life will see greater adoption,” Gupta said.