Step Up. No More Excuses.

I recently read a post meant for students. However, this post gives worthy advice that everybody should hear.

The author is Chase Mielke, a high school teacher, trainer, and instructional coach. He speaks to his students, about why the main event of school is not academic learning. It is about adversity. About learning to overcome problems, to create discipline, to concentrate when other things are going on, to ask for help, to take charge of your own doubts, to delay temptations, to invest in your own intelligence.

He says, “What you need to see is that every time you take the easy way out, you are building a habit of quitting. And it will destroy your future and it will annihilate your happiness if you let it. Our society cares nothing for quitters. Life will let you die alone, depressed, and poor if you can’t man or woman up enough to deal with hardship. You are either the muscle or the dirt. You either take resistance and grow stronger or blow in the wind and erode.”

The words in this post are intense and maybe even harsh, but they are worth listening to. Not just for students but for everybody.

Our company and employees believe in stepping up and taking this market by storm. We will work our hardest to be the best, for ourselves and for our clients. We want you to do the same! Instead of worrying about what you aren’t succeeding at, let your mind be consumed with how you are going to improve. Make the extra sales call. Welcome all of the educational opportunities presented to you. Take a few minutes, often, to read motivational posts like this one. Step up to succeed.

Read the entire post HERE on Chase Mielke’s blog, AffectiveLiving:

https://affectiveliving.wordpress.com/2014/03/08/what-students-really-need-to-hear/

Why I went and had a booth at the National Convenience Store Convention

Today, Jim Brinton, CEO of Avanti, published a blog on Vending Market Watch that details my participation in the National Convenience Store convention last week.  His last paragraph stating “I am taking my 40 years of being in vending and being protective” I hope is his intention of posting the blog.  If that is the case, I understand it and will certainly respect that.  But it by no means paints an accurate picture of why Three Square Market (32M) was at this convention.

Jim, a very successful vending operator who has built two great companies, Evergreen Vending and Avanti (along with his Avanti Northwest brand), is well respected in our industry.  He has built a nationally recognized brand and we are going to work endlessly to catch him and our peers to grow our business.  But in reading his article, I take objection to many of his points and believe it is important to clarify why we are there and what our experiences have been with convenience store owners.

First, Jim, one of the first people I met at the show is not only a convenience store owner (has over a dozen locations), but he is a proud micromarket operator.  In fact, he was in convenience stores long before he got in to markets.  And guess who he has a bunch of stores with?  Avanti. We have several successful Three Square Market operators who are also convenience store operators.  We also have operators who are hotel owners, restaurant proprietors, investors, hair salon owners and more.  Jim, they are already in this business – let’s not try and say this is limited to just vending.

I like you Jim, love vending operators.  We covet the relationships we have with them.  But I covet the relationships I have with all of my operators.  When the healthy vending craze started did you shun them?  When OCS operators got in to arena, did we push them out the door and say this was limited to just vending?  When markets moved from just being in white collar environments to gray collar locations, factories and now one of my most successful locations, charter schools, does that mean we are violating the edict?  How about improving the customer experience by offering mobile payment options versus solely relying on a kiosk – was that also a move in the wrong direction?  The answer to all of these is no.  It is called progress, growth and more.

Acknowledging the convenience store market brings credibility to our arena.  Business owners and the general public are no longer asking “what is a micro market?”  They know what it is because it solidifies that this is no longer a fad – it is here to stay.  What it should mean is that as we bring in more players, we should continue to see improved avenues for all vending operators to enter this arena and grow their businesses.  Vending has been in a slump but as recent as this month, the Automatic Merchandiser highlighted one of our operators who took a struggling 30 year company back to a growing profitable business through markets.  Micro markets has allowed that time and time again for 100’s of vending companies and will continue to for decades to come.

But my issue with the blog doesn’t end with that.  I find some of the statements to be far off-base as would some of my clients.  To say a convenience store operator “doesn’t understand how to deal with human resource personnel or customer service requests” is off base.  Many of these convenience store owners are large corporations who have their own HR Departments and clearly understand how to deal with these leaders.  And, if the attendees of this convention didn’t understand how to deal with customer requests, how are they even in business in this ever changing world of on-line shopping, telecommuting, unstable fuel markets and more.

Jim, I admire and respect your success.  But I have to say, telling me where I should be looking to grow my business is over the line.  I am going to lead our company no different than you by adding valued clients, relationships and more.  Recently we were approached by a major player to enter in to our other business, inmate commissary.  Rather than try to “protect” my business, I approached it as an opportunity to further grow my business.  I found a way to partner with them on their ideas and together, we are going to make growing together a major joint initiative for 2016.

Which is the final reason we attended the show.  We believe that several of our operators could benefit from tying our program to a convenience store operators or chains buying power, brand, loyalty programs and more. Instead of requiring that operators paste our brand name everywhere, we allow them to customize their locations – unlike anyone else. Allowing operators to partner with national brands potentially could bring identity and credibility unmatched in the industry.  It is time to think outside the kiosk and the staple of salts and sugars to grow this industry.  Partnering with some of these chains is an untapped opportunity and 32M intends to lead the kiosk providers in doing things that further enhances the services we offer to our clients and their client sites.  So when you see “1000’s of locations in your city”, you are exactly right – we are looking for ways outside of just planting a kiosk in a breakroom to ensure all of our clients grow their businesses profitably – there are 900,000 potential locations out there, let’s go get them and make them all successful.   It goes parallel to the mission we have at 32M:  Create success at every opportunity.  This was an opportunity to create new avenues for our company, our clients and potential new clients.  It was successful.

Patrick

First To (32)Market!

Look no further for the best!

Three Square Market sets the standards with first to market advancements and options for Break Room Market technology. Rather than just keeping up with the competition, 32M is constantly setting the bar … Make Three Square Market your first choice!

First to Market:

• Version 3.1 Certification PA-DSS
• ROI in Less Than 6 Months
• Full-Service Management – We Run Your Administrative System
• Kiosk Customization to Your Brand
• Inventory Intelligence
• Mobile Applications
• School Lunch Programs
• Competitor Kiosk Conversions

Call us to learn why we are the leader and others follow us!

612.267.8277

http://www.32Market.com

Choose The Leader … Or Be A Follower

You Spoke To Us At CAMA … What’s Next?

We talked about how to innovate, integrate and motivate…

Turn traditional break rooms into innovative break room markets! Three Square Market is the best option in break room market technology and the only break room market service provider that gives you the ability to open a mobile only market with our patent application!

Give clients the option to customize their kiosk! They will be excited to choose a Custom Color, add Custom Decals or add a Full Wrap to create a kiosk that completely integrates with the design of their current or future break room!

32M’s state-of-the-art software allows operators to manage each market from their computer or smartphone, ensuring a prompt response to any market needs. Get motivated to send sales through the roof by using our technology!

Now what?

Let’s continue the conversation and get started transforming your break room!

Contact Patrick at

612.267.2877

PatrickM@32Market.com

Or Schedule an Appointment Here!

Let’s get some facts straight

I talked with one of our great 32M distributors today and heard something that at first ticked me off but then actually was flattering.  He told me one of our noble competitors said “32M isn’t going to be around much longer”.  REALLY?  My brother in law Todd, his brother Tim, and myself …. laughed.  We are 100% privately held, no outside investment, completely self built, self funded, company.  We have ZERO outside stockholders.  We are the decision makers and guess what?  We are not going anywhere, we are not for sale and we are in the middle of a record year.  We have a phenomenal group of employees, we just added two very large jails and have nearly 4,000 more inmates set to install between now and the end of January.  We have a new patent application pending on another new enhancement to our micro market system, we are adding three new major features to our jail system in the next 60 days, and our supply company is now launching a major new initiative with Vistar that is sure to change how people look at both our supply company and 32M.  Add to it, we have a few major game-changing features set to roll out in our market business and a major new product in our jail business coming out in early 2016.

So, when you saw “32M won’t be around” really maybe what they meant is that yes, they won’t be in our rear view mirror much longer.  Yes, two competitors are currently bigger than us in the market business.  But we are rapidly gaining on them and with some of the relationships set to launch, that gap is going to close even faster.

Here is a nugget for you: You have a great kiosk.  We like it and yes, we have duplicated some of its’ features.  Pay a compliment instead of selling smoke and mirrors.  Sell the facts of your system and if you can’t, please as an operator, don’t buy in to the nonsense.  I will say this, I saw Jim Britton today at a convention – I would work with him if you didn’t work with 32M because of his passion for his business.  Or I would spend the time with the folks at Breakroom Provisions – good people with a good product – before I would spend five seconds with people who resort to these sales tactics.

Last, we were the first with many things but we weren’t the first to market.  Kudos to Jim and Joe and others for setting the stage for others like us to jump on.  Now let’s stick to the facts as we move ahead.

We take a great deal of pride in how we built our company, who we are, our great employees, clients and more.  We are not going anywhere.  We look forward to competing for the next several decades in all of our businesses and those to come.  In the meantime, research the facts and if you have a question, ask one of our great distributors, our employees, or me.

Create success today at every opportunity.

Patrick

Thanks For Stopping! #ACE2015

Thank you for stopping by our Three Square Market booth this weekend at ACE 2015! It was a blast and a pleasure to meet all of you.

A quick recap of why 32M is your BEST option:

• Our patent mobile application gives you the opportunity to monitor the market from any location with an internet connection – The market is always taken care of, even on the go!
• Our ordering intelligence system ensures the right amount of the right products are always in the market.
• Customization options represent each individual brand!
• Businesses enjoy the benefits of a market while operators can expect the best results and high market sales!
• Our theft management approach allows you to proactively incorporate our most complete anti-theft tools into your previously established inventory maintenance practices to avoid or resolve any issues.
• Our pricing structure is designed to allow you to equip the store with the most complete solution possible!

To continue our conversation, please contact Patrick at:

612.267.2877

PatrickM@32Market.com

Or schedule an appointment here!

Change – the word we hate but need for success is really less than a minute a day of change

The late legendary coach Herb Brooks said in essence “change is something nearly everyone hates, fails to embrace but it is mandatory for success”.  I find that daily I find in both our great employees or valued clients, we are always faced with that conversation: “What do we need to change? Will it be successful? Do I want to do it?”

Well I see change a lot differently than most. If you break down your day and the decisions we make, they likely account for less than 60 seconds of our time daily. Whether we decide what to eat, when to sleep or awake, exercise, work, work smart, work hard, screw off, blow off a new process, try a new route home, listen intently to our spouses, etc., the list is very likely very long. But the amount of time spent processing the go left or right is a fraction of a second.  And this is where you as a leader, employee, spouse or aspiring “let’s get in better shape” adult succeed or don’t. 

We all know that if we wanted to have a utopia life, whatever that utopia is defined as for your individual life, it comes down to our current life is a summation of our prior decisions and our future will be determined by the sum of decisions made starting RIGHT NOW.  If you read the next sentence you purposely or subconsciously decided “I want read on – this is good stuff” or “I am going to read this as this guy is full of hot air and I want more humor”, or the last option, someone stopped reading this. 

The reality is if you want to change your path in life, you are given infinite opportunities to start changing every day.  You want to be in better shape and it is the middle of the work day?  Decide you want water right now versus Diet Coke.  Decide to stretch your legs right now and every 30 minutes so that when you get home you are ready to go for a walk rather than crash on the couch.  Want to be more productive, decide not to check Facebook right now versus making that next critical sales call.  

Reality is that there are infinite paths to walk on daily.  Your daily resting point in the journey of life tonight is controlled by you.  Don’t like your health, change it – if you have cancer that isn’t in your control but if you are out of shape, that is all you.  You don’t like your boss, look in the mirror first and ask if he/she is the problem or does your attitude have something to do it.  More specifically, is the choices you are making leading to poor performance that your “prick of a boss” is really doing you a favor? Or, is your boss or his/her boss simply an ass clown and it is time to be happy and pursue success elsewhere?  A Harvard Business School study found 54% of the time someone doesn’t succeed at a job has zero to do with the employer: it resided solely on the poor attitude and attitude skills one brought to the job. Is the boss an idiot or are you?

The reality, if you are lacking success in any aspect of your life or business or job, the opportunity to change is immediate. And when your break it all down, if you can improve the 60 seconds a day of decisions you make, you will see immediate improvement. 

Last, you may ask, how do I improve my decisions and make the change happen?

1) Slow down and breathe.  Notice I said breathe, not think.  Many bad decisions are made because people are not of a calm mindset to even think. Decisions made in this state are often influenced by anger, fatigue, being hungry or just being lazy.  So, take a deep breath first and prepare to think and analyze. 

2) Know the opposite effect of what you are about to decide. If you are seeking change, than your reality is the opposite effect you are seeking – what is the opposite of that? Know both, then make the decision based upon the desired outcome.  Case in point: You are working on growing your sales but have had a lousy day in sales.  Yet, you know your results have been slacking because you have spent more time on Facebook and fantasy football picks than working your lead management system.  So no one has answered after 24 calls: you can hit Facebook or you can make the next call.  You are at the intersection of success and not.  You can stick with your current results and Facebook routing and enjoy your current paycheck or you can knuckle down and go after the next prospect?  

The reality, achieving success and not is that simple.  60 seconds of change is not hard – make simple yet disciplined changes and you will see the results.  

Create success today at every opportunity.  

Patrick 

Sends Sales to Spooky Levels!

Now is the time to take advantage of the upcoming holiday, Halloween! Holidays and events bring in the peaks of sales – if you market them correctly, that is. Make sure you have your candy, pumpkins, and spooky treats on display in your Three Square Market!

Follow these 4 steps to effectively market during Halloween:

1)

Tell people about it! Create signs to place by the entrance and around your market, post about Halloween on social media, and remind clients and customers about it through word-of-mouth. Anything to get the buzz, well… buzzing! Take advantage of last minute purchases, by having convenient items for those customers that haven’t thought ahead.

2)

Decorate for it. Get people in the mood and enthusiastic about the eerie holiday! Decorations don’t need to be excessive or over-the-top to get the point across. A few things here and there will get noticed and (sometimes subconsciously) be the extra push to get someone to buy an item they might not have otherwise thought to purchase.

3)

Offer deals or specials. Sometimes, advertising and placing items in the right places is enough to make the sales. However, during Halloween, deals might be necessary for increasing sales. Typically, deals are offered at other competing stores – bulk candy, dollar decoration items, etc. Instead of simply offering discounts, you might want to have a BOGO style sale, limited-time-only offers … Get creative!

4)

Strategize the placement of your merchandise. The seasonal merchandise that you offer during a limited time should typically be placed by the entrance/exit and by the kiosk. These items should be the first and last thing that customers see, because they are the most important items to show-off, during Holidays. Keep the items you want to sell most or have the highest mark-up, at eye level. Try putting products on separate displays. Basically, give the customers no way to miss them! Place complimentary items near each other. Again, creativity is key! It’s the upsell! A simple way to get customers buying not only what they came in for, but a little something extra.

Follow these simple steps and push your sales to scary levels this Halloween!

Can You Tell Them Apart?

So, you know that markets come in all shapes and size …

But do you know our kiosks come in all shapes and sizes too?!

Employees will love the ease of checkout and adding money to their accounts using our simple website or even our industry best smartphone apps! Using our proprietary checkout kiosks, employees are able to check out in a matter of seconds. Long lines? No problem! Checkout is available on the 32M Smartphone application. Put an individual kiosk in every employee’s hand at no cost!

32M Software is we-based and all kiosks and market layouts come with our industry best inventory management system that ensures the shelves remain stocked and the food remains fresh. Unlike many of our competitors, our kiosk software is updated frequently via the web – giving your kiosk the latest and greatest version at all times!

Take a look at our kiosk options:

32M Mobile App

A kiosk in every hand! With the mobile application all smart phones have the capability of being a personal kiosk.

Tablet Kiosk

The Tablet Kiosk is the smallest kiosk version capable of credit or market account transactions. Available in wall or table mount, perfect for smaller locations or locations in need of a second kiosk at a large location.

Junior Kiosk

The Junior Kiosk is a smaller version of the market kiosk that is fully cash and credit capable, available in a wall or table mount. Perfect for smaller locations that need extra space.

Market Kiosk

The Market Kiosk is the standard kiosk for all locations. Built for Cash, Credit or Market Account transactions. Also available in Cash In/Out version.

Senior Executive & Executive Kiosk

The Senior Executive and Executive kiosk is the latest in Break Room Market Technology. Boasting an option for an additional 22″ promotional screen and standard 19″ touchscreen the Executive kiosk comes standard with Cash In, Credit Card Swipe, Bar Code Reader, In-Kiosk Web Camera and Biometric Fingerprint Technology.

Choose a Custom Color, Add Custom Decals or a Full Wrap to create a kiosk that completely integrates with the design of your current or future break room!