AVA : If you’re an operator in vending or unattended retail, then you don’t need PV to tell you that 2020 was an incredibly difficult year. With office closures, next to no commuters and leisure and retail facilities closed, the sector was badly hit by the pandemic and subsequent lockdowns.
The lockdown year(s) have heralded some significant changes to consumer behaviour and accelerated others and in common with and all industries, Vending and Automatic Retail (VAR!) has had to adapt to meet new demands and routes of access.
Despite challenges, the sector has shown resilience, collaboration, and innovation in terms of the products on offer and how they are dispensed. The AVA describes itself as ‘the only representative organisation that can influence legislation concerning the vending industry’ and promises that ‘as an AVA member, we will ensure that your voice is heard’.
AVA: The Vending & Automated Retail Association
‘Not only does the AVA logo provide a quality accreditation but being an AVA member also means that your business has access to advice and support when needed, protection against damaging legislation, shared knowledge and access to training courses and networking opportunities’, CEO David Llewellyn told us.
‘In response to these challenges and the ever-evolving vending industry, we are welcoming a new era of the AVA with a renewed vision and purpose, which will not only more closely align with the role of the AVA but will represent the changing needs of its members’, David continued. ‘Our vision is for the vending and automated retail industry to meet the needs of our 24/7, on-the-go society by making high-quality, innovative food and beverage services accessible wherever and whenever people need them.’
As such, the AVA, will now be known as ‘AVA: The Vending & Automated Retail Association’, but the organisation will remain as the definitive voice for the automated 24-hour food and beverage industry, supporting its members now and into the future.
Follow developments at the AVA through the years by accessing PV’s unique archive of related news and features, HERE
The updated AVA LinkedIn page can be accessed HERE
