Case Study: Vagabond boosts vending profits to 20% and cuts operating costs with Google Cloud Platform

Vagabond streamlining vending machine operations leading to triple profits

Vagabond is a technology platform for the vending industry that built an IoT network to monitor machines in real time, but needed a mapping solution to pinpoint machine locations and efficiently route drivers for restocking and cash collection. The challenge was delivering precise indoor/outdoor locations and actionable location-based filters so operators could reduce downtime, prevent theft, and streamline operations with limited IT resources.

Using Google Maps Platform (Maps JavaScript API plus Places and Geocoding APIs), Vagabond added a map-based web app that overlays each machine’s stock, cash levels and service needs as map pins, enables precise placement inside buildings, and generates efficient routes. The result: profit margins rose from 2.5% to as much as 20%, labor/trucking/operations spending fell by 15%, and theft was eliminated, recovering about 15% of top-line revenue.

Vagabond

Michael Lovett

Co-founder and CEO