Sprinkles Cupcakes long-awaited cupcake dispenser has finally opened next to its bakery in the Upper East Side of Manhattan on Tuesday that works just like an ATM. Yes, you heard that correctly. But instead of dispensing cash, it dispenses cupcakes. Can you say sweet tooth?
The first cupcake ATM opened in Beverly Hills, California, in 2012, and since, Sprinkles has also installed it’s brightly colored machines in Chicago, Dallas and Atlanta. This cupcake ATM now gives New Yorkers the convenience of being able to buy fresh, decadent goodies 24/7 with the simple push of a button…in the city that “never sleeps.” Uh oh, looks like our local bakeries have some competition.
The machine can dispense up to 20 varieties and four cupcakes at a time by way of a touch screen and each cupcake costs $4.25. Flavors include Red Velvet, Cuban Coffee, S’mores, Banana Dark Chocolate, Cinnamon Sugar…now let me stop before you start drooling. Additionally, there is an offering for dogs: two mini-cupcakes for $5. They come in one flavor, are sugar-free and have a yogurt frosting. The machine is able to hold 760 c-cakes at a time and will be restocked throughout the day to keep things fresh and delish!
Vending machines have changed a lot since their invention, and more and more businesses have been experimenting with selling fresh food from machines. In fact BuzzFeed reports there are “24 vending machines you won’t believe exist”. You can get live crabs in China, caviar in Los Angeles, lettuce in Japan, pizza in Europe, french fries in Australia, Burger’s in Moscow, and mashed potatoes in Singapore — all from vending machines. Marketing expert Adam Hanft says it may be convenient but it’s also about the robotic experience one gets. The vending machine industry has actually grown from $600 million in 1946 to well over $45 billion today.
So, how does the cupcake ATM set an example for other businesses? Well, it’s not just a very clever, media-savvy tool that happens to dramatically increase per-store revenue, it’s also one of many examples of the great opportunities available to other businesses to incorporate consumer-centric innovation into commonly accepted industry practices. We are now in the age of the consumer, where the people are now controlling things, not the companies or businesses. Consumers are interactive, not just receptive, which now forces companies to look at their business model through the eyes of the consumers.
One lesson to other companies could be to link the digital and physical worlds as best as you can. Linking the digital (sensors, robotics, video, touch screens) and the physical world (CUPCAKES)!! By doing this, businesses can take advantage and better serve its customers, while making more money. (Ain’t that what we’re all really in it for anyway?)
We love tech! And you can too. Enjoy a cupcake, get creative and show us what’s next!
Xo,
Audrey