cost of tokens

[PaulLovesJamie]

Any of you guys bought tokens lately? I just bought 10,000 more tokens, and the price was up 90%. Granted, it's been 5 years since I bought any, but holy cow!

[Jim L.]

Back in Jan. I bought 10,000 bi-metal tokens from Van Brook. It was $.312 each + shipping. I used to use the common brass tokens and they were only $.08 each.

[I.B. Washincars]

Back in Jan. I bought 10,000 bi-metal tokens from Van Brook. It was $.312 each + shipping. I used to use the common brass tokens and they were only $.08 each.

Comparing the common cheapy type token to the high-security bi-metals is like comparing a Lexus to a pair of roller skates. You need to compare apples to apples here.

[MEP001]

Any of you guys bought tokens lately? I just bought 10,000 more tokens, and the price was up 90%. Granted, it's been 5 years since I bought any, but holy cow!
The costs of raw metals have skyrocketed in the last two years - stainless steel, for example (which is primarily copper and nickel), has more than doubled. It's no surprise that tokens are more expensive as well. In the last five years, even fuel prices have factored into the cost of tokens.

[bigleo48]

You can thank China for that!

[PaulLovesJamie]

Yeah, I know practically everything (except a car wash) has doubled in price. As the cost of tokens gets high though, it becomes tougher to justify using them.

[Greg Pack]

Are you using them to replace quarters or dollars?

I read the cost of materials and production has gone up so much that it costs the US govt 1.4 cents to make a penny, and seven cents to make a nickel

[PaulLovesJamie]

The day the $1 coin came out, I switched one of my bill changers to dispense tokens valued at $1, I had the other changer dispensing quarters for 1 year after that, then switched it to tokens. I still accept $1 coins and quarters too. It has worked very well for me, but at these prices just for the "cheap" 85/15 brass tokens, wow ... it just hurts.

I've really resisted raising my prices for the last couple of years - I've been at a $2 wash & $1 vending price point for about 4 or 5 years now, and have controlled/reduced costs enough to hold profits steady. I dont think I have a choice anymore though - this token thing may have just pushed me over the edge. Now I'm thinking that new years day is the price increase day.

[Waxman]

go for it; raise prices.

i'll stay the same for a few years since i am new. but i did raise detail shop pricing and create a new brochure for 2008, which i will use selling holiday gift certificates.

[edredtop]

Yeah, I know practically everything (except a car wash) has doubled in price. As the cost of tokens gets high though, it becomes tougher to justify using them.

I have found that using a $1 token has the potential for additional profit and the reduction of theft risk. If a customer pays $1 for a token that costs me .32 cents and they never use or they lose it, that's .68 cents pure profit for me! Meanwhile, if I need $5000 (value) in my change machine, I would much rather have $5000 in tokens (cost=$1600) than $5000 in $1 coins (cost=$5000) hanging on my wall. That leaves you with $3400 to spend on something else. What are the chances a thief would want to pop a bill changer if they think it's just full of tokens? Now, what are the chances a thief would want to pop a machine full of those shiny new gold $1 coins? PLUS, when you use tokens bank runs are for DEPOSITS ONLY! No more going to pick up MORE $1 coins (or quarters) to fill the hopper. And that also reduces your risk of being seen with "bags of money" coming out of the bank or at the wash.
Ed

[Waxman]

Yes, Tokens have this advantage over quarters.

However, you need IMO, to somehow accept quarters and tokens. I went all tokens and while it is great in some respects (walk offs, reduced break ins to vacs and bay vaults) customers still think of quarters when they think of coin-op carwashes. That is the fact.

I change quarters for tokens every day.:o

My solution? I bought a Shurvend machine with 51 selections. It accepts $1,5, coins and credit cards. I plan to have a row of tokens in various quantity ($1,2,5,10) and put up signs indicating to the quarter-toting customers that the vending machine is the place to purchase their tokens for their quarters. PROBLEM SOLVED at last! Thanks uncle Sam!

As for dollar coins; people don't even know what those are, IMO.:eek:

[JMMUSTANG]

I've been in the self serv business for over 30 yrs. and I can honestly say that I can't remember ever going to the bank to buy back quarters.
I have always kept at least a $1,000 reserve for each location if possible.
My question is to those that vend out tokens. Do you use the standard (cheaper) brass (I believe 85/15) token that is alittle larger than a quarter or do most of you use the custom made tokens?

[Randy]

If you dispense Tokens from your Bill changer all of your equipment should accept both Tokens and Quarters. I were a customer and I had a pocket full of quarters I?m not going to go looking for a vending machine to buy tokens, I want to use my quarters, do my thing and leave or I?d leave and go elsewhere that will accept my quarters. You want to make it as convenient for the customer as you can.

The best place that I?ve found to buy tokens now is Moffatt & Co. www.moffattandco.com

[pitzerwm]

It's just an education problem with your customers

[MEP001]

I know there are people on here who are exclusively tokens and don't accept anything else but credit cards in order to have no cash on premses. For them it may be a convenience issue or possibly a necessity, but it has been made to work. I don't know what it would take for me to switch to dispensing tokens from the changer or to stop taking bills and govenment-issued coins, but I would avoid it due to the closed-mindedness of certain people.

[Ric]

Yes, Tokens have this advantage over quarters.

However, you need IMO, to somehow accept quarters and tokens. I went all tokens and while it is great in some respects (walk offs, reduced break ins to vacs and bay vaults) customers still think of quarters when they think of coin-op carwashes. That is the fact.

I change quarters for tokens every day.:o

My solution? I bought a Shurvend machine with 51 selections. It accepts $1,5, coins and credit cards. I plan to have a row of tokens in various quantity ($1,2,5,10) and put up signs indicating to the quarter-toting customers that the vending machine is the place to purchase their tokens for their quarters. PROBLEM SOLVED at last! Thanks uncle Sam!

As for dollar coins; people don't even know what those are, IMO.:eek:


I added a coin mech to my American Changers. It allows customers to deposit 4 quarters and receive a token. They can also, of course, get tokens with one, five, ten and twenty dollar bills. They can also purchase tokens with credit cards on these machines. I accept only tokens in my bays. I am considering toying with credit card acceptance in the bays.

[Waxman]

Good point, Randy. I sent you a pm.:)

[washnvac]

My question is to those that vend out tokens. Do you use the standard (cheaper) brass (I believe 85/15) token that is alittle larger than a quarter or do most of you use the custom made tokens?

I use a .90 high security stock token from Van Brook valued at $1. They are about $.19 each. It is just a bit smaller than a quarter. Van Brook gives me a 100 mile protected radius around all of my locations; where they will not sell the same kind of token (metal content). I dispense 100% tokens; yes even as change in my auto cashiers. Everything is clearly signed. I have been in the business since '94, and have never been strung or had any change machines broken into. I think that says it all!!

[wendy's wash]

Morning. Have to share my experience with everyone. Jan. 1/ 07 I changed both of my washes to take tokens. I use Van Brook secure tokens. About the size of a nickle. Cost .20 each. I had been loosing about $1,200.00 of quarters at wash a month in Pasadena, Texas that is 32 years old. I would be at wash and there would be at least 2-3-4 cars drive up get change and drive off while I was cleaning and it drove me crazy.Of course it still had the mechanical coin mechs. Went with Slugbusters. No change was needed for hopper, just adjustment. I went to zero quarters walking away. I don't even have extra quarters to take to bank. Did not lose any customers or should I say income stayed the same. I take both quarters and tokens. Just had my first break in to a vac for coins. Took 2.5 hours to reshape coin box and 3 decals. Almost looks as good as new. Going to all tokens is suicide in my area. Wash around corner went to tokens only in dollar machine and looked like a ghost town. Every washes customers are differant. Output of soap and everything works when they try to use it and being cleaned daily. I use small tokens because I have a total of 25 single column laurel dispencers and these tokens fall right thru machines as they only take quarters. They were a good fit for me. My mind is now mellow and the cost of tokens is well worth the cost to me. Has made my life much easier. P.S. If tokens get to cost over a quarter then Houston we have a problem.

[Waxman]

Gotta call Timemaster today and get my hand held thru reprogramming 'cause I take quarters now but only give a min. 45 instead of 3 1/2 min for $2 in quarters. Had downloaded the pdf for my model but it didn't address my issue!

[[email protected]]

I have found that using a $1 token has the potential for additional profit and the reduction of theft risk. If a customer pays $1 for a token that costs me .32 cents and they never use or they lose it, that's .68 cents pure profit for me! Meanwhile, if I need $5000 (value) in my change machine, I would much rather have $5000 in tokens (cost=$1600) than $5000 in $1 coins (cost=$5000) hanging on my wall. That leaves you with $3400 to spend on something else. What are the chances a thief would want to pop a bill changer if they think it's just full of tokens? Now, what are the chances a thief would want to pop a machine full of those shiny new gold $1 coins? PLUS, when you use tokens bank runs are for DEPOSITS ONLY! No more going to pick up MORE $1 coins (or quarters) to fill the hopper. And that also reduces your risk of being seen with "bags of money" coming out of the bank or at the wash.
Ed


Hi Ed - my name is Gibson and I'm the Marketing Specialist for TokensDirect and Van Brook. This comment is "spot on" (probably not a good pun for a car wash owner :)) and a message that we're trying to get out to SS car wash owners who may still be using quarters/$1 coins and are hesitating making the switch to tokens for one reason or another.

Would it be possible for me to use your post and or name in some marketing materials that I'm preparing detailing the benefits of switching from coinage to tokens?

[I.B. Washincars]

I dispense a combo of dollar coins and quarters as well as having another changer for dispensing tokens. Tokens have been a very expensive lesson for me. I have a credit balance of over $1500 with Van Brook that I tried to use this spring and your company refused to honor my credit because it was from previous to the buyout. I'm assuming that if I had owed Van Brook $1500 I would have been expected to pay. You may correct me if I am wrong.

Feel free to quote my post in any of your marketing materials if you wish.

[pitzerwm]

If they specifically excluded the liabilities, then legally they don't have to honor that credit. However, since their cost is much less than that, stiffing you and being exposed here, will cost them a lot more than that. Until this is settled to your satisfaction you won't see their adverting on this site. IMO, the fact that you had to come means that their communication with previous customers needs some work too.

[I.B. Washincars]

Bill, you may very well be correct that they didn't buy the liabilties. I can understand that any unpaid bills by VB (not saying there were any) they most likely would not be required to pay. This was not an unpaid bill, but was a credit (for mdse.) on an open account. I would think that would be totally different than an outstanding bill, but I guess I could be wrong. The fact that I didn't need to use the credit for over 3 years might also have been an issue.

Regardless of whether my assumptions are correct or not, Van Brook called me yesterday afternoon. They took good care of me (If Bill is correct, over and above what they had to do) and all was worked out to my satisfaction. It looks like Virgil (I miss chatting with that guy) left the company in good hands after all. I'll still be buying Van Brook tokens in the future.

Thanks Bill for the forum, I owe you a dinner next spring in Vegas. And lastly, thanks to Dottie at VB. You've always been a sweetheart, very proffessional, and helpful every time I have ever called. I hope the new owners keep you there until you decide it's time for you to go.

I'm very pleased and appreciate VB stepping up on this issue, thanks.

[pitzerwm]

Well, thanks to Osborne/Van Brook for watching the forum and going beyond "whats legal" and thanks to Pat for admitting that he might have dropped the ball by not taking his credit in a timely manner.

This is a good lesson, if you have a credit, use it within a reasonable time!!!

So hopefully one day you will see Osborne/Van Brook as a supporter:)

[I.B. Washincars]

You're right Bill, I really did shoot myself in the foot by letting that go so long :( In my defense, it just isn't in my psyche to spend money when I don't need something. Oh well, I guess I'll know better next time :D

I agree that we need to see a Van Brook ad here on the forum.