How a Hardware Vending Machine Became Our Newest Location Became
T&M Hardware chose to pilot the vending machine at this location due to its high visibility, strong foot traffic and easy walk-up access along a busy main street.
Customers of T&M Hardware & Rental in THE Pittsburgh AREA can now buy hardware, emergency repair supplies and more even when the store is closed.
Shhhh! I sort of bought a new store without telling my parents, who are my co-owners of T&M Hardware & Rental. Not because I was being sneaky, but because I believed we needed to reimagine how we do business as we look toward retail’s future.
Sitting there between pallets and racking was a new hardware vending machine, bright and loaded with plumbing repair kits, pipe fittings, drain cleaners and batteries. I surprised my parents with it: “So . . . imagine this outside the store so customers still have access to things they need after hours.”
They stared at it in awe for a moment, their shock then quickly replaced by a spirit of collaboration. My dad started measuring the machine to make sure it would fit in the space outside, then pointed out that we should put a phone number on the side in case someone needed help using it. My mom started talking about adding graphics to make it stand out and catch people’s attention. It didn’t take long before long they were throwing out ideas about what we should put in it and how customers might use it. That moment summed up what this project has been about: blending our old-fashioned foundation with a bit more modern technology to serve our customers better.
Vending machines are everywhere now, and our entire business model is built around convenience. It made sense to ask whether that same technology could work for hardware and to question whether we could create a digital store that would help us boost our business instead of adding another physical location, which is traditionally how we’ve grown.
Stocked with a thoughtful mix of emergency repair items and everyday hardware, the machine reflects how T&M Hardware approached product selection for around-the-clock access.
Emergency Fix to Everyday Access
At first, I was focused on emergencies. Pipes burst, roofs leak and drains clog late at night and early in the morning. With more weather-related problems in our area last year, I found myself opening the store early, staying late or opening after hours so people could have access to supplies. I wanted to start by creating a solution to that problem.
Once we started mapping out what to put in the machine, it became obvious that we had the opportunity to do much more. Why limit it to emergencies? Why not give customers a way to “shop” our store during the 12 hours a day we’re closed—without having to place an online order and wait for us to return in the morning to pull it? Why not offer it as a version of self-checkout to that customer who needed only one thing during business hours anyway?
High-Traffic Test Site Built for Awareness
As we looked to introduce the machine to the community, we stocked it first with winter-critical items: heaters, salt, window insulation kits, SharkBite fittings, tubing cutters and pipe repair kits. Then we layered in everyday hardware that people realize they need at inconvenient times—drain cleaner, batteries, flashlights, paintbrushes, picture-hanging kits, tarps and roof repair supplies. We also added a few unexpected items like old-fashioned candy to pay homage to the vending machine.
That’s how the idea turned the machine into a true micro–hardware store.
We’re piloting the machine outside our Pittsburgh location because it’s on a busy main street corner. It’s well-lit, highly visible and easy to walk up to. That matters not just for safety, but for awareness given that this is a new concept for our industry. We trust that starting at this location will help the machine generate its own buzz, because customers will be talking and posting about it as they engage with it. They’ll bring friends to show it off to because it’s new and exciting, and we believe they’ll recommend it to a friend when they need a late-night fix, as T&M Hardware & Rental is easily accessible to most of Pittsburgh.
Our hope is to get proof of concept and work out the logistical issues before rolling machines out to our other five stores.
Seen at NRF Retail’s Big Show, next-generation vending machines reflect a growing retail trend, combining high-visibility displays with the ability to sell a wide range of products.
Pricing, Process and Early Feedback
Our goal was to keep pricing the same as in the store (plus tax) so customers weren’t paying more, but we had to adjust our plan when we realized the machine’s card reader had a higher processing fee than our in-store readers. This forced us to charge a little more for convenience. While that’s not ideal, consumers are used to it, so we don’t see it as a barrier when shoppers are standing in front of the machine and just want their problem solved. It gives customers the choice to pay for convenience or to wait until morning when the store reopens to save a few cents.
Operationally, the machine fits into systems we already set up for e-commerce. It isn’t automated like our online ordering, but we have an existing system that enables us to remove inventory out of the POS, without having to reinvent the wheel, when we sell product from the machine. The more challenging aspect of inventory was getting the products to fit in the slots and stand upright given that the machine wasn’t made for some of our items. It took time, but we were ultimately able to reconfigure them so customers could better see them while ensuring that they’d feed out without getting stuck.
What’s been most exciting is how our customers have already embraced the machine. To involve them in the process, we first teased the machine and then shared behind-the-scenes videos of us setting it up. The response has been very supportive. Customers have started contributing ideas for product suggestions, which is encouraging, indicating that they see the value in it. And my parents—the same two people I “surprised” in the warehouse—now think about it the same way I do: It’s an opportunity to use technology to grow and evolve our business, as well as our relationship with customers.
That’s the real lesson here: This is more than a vending machine. It’s a new way for a hardware store to show up for its community—one locker, one fitting and one late-night emergency at a time.
Samantha Post is a second-generation co-owner and marketing leader at T&M Hardware & Rental, where she helps guide growth, manage acquisitions (sometimes to the surprise of her co-owners) and lead marketing efforts for the family’s six Do it Best stores in Pennsylvania and Ohio. Find Samantha and T&M here.
