Aug. 19, 2022

A Sioux Falls couple is starting a vending machine company focused on local, high-tech machines.

Austin Klueber, the owner of 605 Snacks with his wife, Megan, is starting the business to better serve clients in the area.

The machines have customizable features for each location, including shelf spacing, the distribution system, a UV system that kills bacteria and a laser system “that guarantees you don’t get things stuck in the machine,” Klueber said.

The 605 Snacks machines are connected through an app as well, so he’ll be alerted when the vending machines are low and need to be filled.

“We can vend any product you can imagine,” he added. “It has an elevator system, so it gently drops things like glass bottles. It’s refrigerated, so we can serve meals in the machines too. It’s really the technology that makes us different as a company.”

And while the high-tech vending machines are what makes the startup stand apart, it’s also a local relationship and connection. There are only a small number of local vending companies in town that aren’t connected to larger companies such as Coke or Pepsi.

“Our main thing is service,” Klueber said. “We really want to work with businesses to make their employees or customers happy with vending machines. I think a lot of people are unhappy with their current vendors or see the need to put a machine in a new spot.”

While the Kluebers are just getting started on building their client base and putting in vending machines, he hopes to partner with a range of businesses, hospitals and schools.

“If there’s a machine in a school or hospital, we’d really like to donate a portion of profits, maybe 10 percent, to the organization’s charity,” Klueber said.