Should I buy an existing ATM route or start one?

Both paths end in the same place: machines in busy sites, earning a fee on each use. They differ in what you carry on the way. Buying brings a history you can examine. Starting brings a blank page and the freedom to shape it.

What buying gives you

An existing route gives you machines already placed, site agreements already signed and a record of how each site performs. You can study the record before you commit. The cost is that you take on the seller’s contracts, their choices of location and any weak machines. You also depend on sites and the processor agreeing to move to you.

What starting gives you

Starting lets you pick machines, sites and terms from the beginning. You carry no one else’s problems. But nothing is proven. Each site has to be found, persuaded and set up, and early months may show little. The work is much like sales: cold approaches, follow-ups and patience. If you enjoy that, it is a real advantage. If not, it may drain you.

Questions that decide it

• How much cash can you commit now, and how much can you afford to lose?
• Can you spend time visiting prospective sites, or do you need income quickly?
• Do you want a record to study, or the freedom to build your own?
• Would a mix work, such as buying a small route and then adding sites?

A comparison with vending

The vending page on franchise versus independent routes weighs support against freedom. The same question appears here in a different form. Talk to current owners, if you can, about what they would do again.