CHAPTER 1 FROM TEMPLES TO SNACKS With With just the push of a button vending machines offer a fast and easy way to buy products People use them to quench their thirst after a long walk Others can pick up an afternoon snack Vending machines dispense an item when money is inserted Today many vending machines sell drinks and snacks Japan has approximately one vending machine for every 23 people 5
But people used vending machines long before packaged snacks were invented The first vending machine was used in ancient Egyptian temples It gave out holy water when people put in a coin This was the only vending machine system for hundreds of years In the early 1600s CE some inns in England began using vending machines The machines held different products inside a box When customers put a coin in the box the lid popped open Customers were supposed to take one product But the machines were very simple Dishonest people could take more than they paid for 6
In 1889 this vending machine sold hot drinks in Paris France In 1888 Thomas Adams wanted to sell more of his company’s chewing gum He hired someone to design a new kind of vending machine Users put a coin in the machine’s slot Then they pressed a lever The gum dropped down Adams placed the machines at New York City train stations People waiting for trains bought the gum 7
