Donation vending machines in Japan offer way to give back

TOKYO >> Japan’s ubiquitous vending machines are now a convenient way for consumers to change the world with their pocket change.

“Donation vending machines” have been popping up in recent years as a new business model that has owners donating a portion of sales to charitable organizations.

Operators hope the initiative will be a win-win for the community and businesses, which provide consumers an added incentive to select their machines over the many others in the vending machine capital of the world.

In September, Kazuki Hirose, president of KY, a heating, ventilation and air conditioning contractor in Yokohama, installed a charity vending machine on the first floor of his building. It houses bottled drinks.

“Neighbors have approached me to express their delight at being able to give back to society,” Hirose said.

The company has chosen to donate proceeds to the Japan Team of Young Human Power, a Tokyo- based nonprofit working to build schools in Cambodia and other parts of the globe. Since the company must foot the bill for electricity and other costs generated by the vending machine, the donation amount comes to only 1 yen, or barely 1 cent, per bottle sold. But it has still attracted many supporters, including some who travel long distances specifically to buy drinks from the machine.

The company received a sustainability accreditation from the city in June and had been looking for further ways to contribute to the community.

“It’s helped raise our company’s profile,” Hirose said. “We would like to consider donating more per bottle in the future.”

Interest in charity vending machines is on the rise, according to a Tokyo nonprofit group that connects charities with companies seeking to participate in the initiative. The group said that from 2015 to 2020, the number of vending machine installations it helped facilitate had tripled. In 2015, 80 were installed; in 2020, installations rose to 270.

Donation machines, wrapped with graphics announcing the name and activity of the charity it benefits, stand out on the street. Beneficiaries of the initiative are gratified with both the donations and the exposure.

The eye-catching graphics come courtesy of beverage manufacturers.

“The vending machine market has reached a saturation point,” said a spokesperson of one beverage company. “But being able to explain the social value of the charity vending machines has made it easier to encourage people to install more machines.”

Various groups have been working to promote the initiative.

In fiscal 2020, the Nippon Foundation installed 486 new vending machines at social welfare organizations and other sites, bringing the grand total of charity vending machines to 8,110. The foundation donates 10 yen per beverage bottle — in one year, that funnels about 280 million yen (nearly $2.5 million) to support children with terminal diseases.

“We would like to cultivate a donation culture by getting more people involved, little by little,” said a foundation spokesperson.

“When people see and use charity vending machines on a daily basis, it becomes a catalyst for them to think about social contribution in their daily lives,” said Kei Kuriki, a Kobe University professor and beverage marketing expert. “It will also connect to a greater movement to solve issues in the community as a whole.”