As featured in the Fall/Winter 2019 issue of The Executive, an online magazine featuring members of Gwinnett Chamber’s Chairman’s Club.
Owner/Operator, Mike Smith
It’s 3 p.m. and, instead of foraging for change to buy a soda and candy bar from the vending machine that ate your change yesterday, you find yourself holding an individually brewed cup of brand-name coffee, taking in the scent of freshly cut flowers, and surveying the yogurt, granola and trail mix snack options that you can pay for with your mobile phone. This breakroom services swap could be the case if your company partners with Savvy Vending.
“We’re trying to elevate the breakroom experience,” said Mike Smith, owner/operator of Savvy Vending. Based in Duluth, the family-owned breakroom services company offers coffee, vending and water and ice service to businesses and schools.
While Savvy has options and levels of service to fit just about any client budget, it is one of only nine companies in Georgia that provides Starbucks’ Serenade machine, which holds three different types of coffee beans, ground fresh for each individually brewed cup, as well as the ingredients to create chai lattes and hot chocolate. “It’s the closest experience you can get to a coffee house onsite without setting up a barista in your breakroom,” Smith said. Savvy also offers their own private-label Colombian coffee as a more budget-friendly option.
For vending, Savvy’s machines contain the regular candy and soda options, but also include healthier fare like teas, granola bars and yogurts. “Our goal isn’t to tell people what to eat but give them options that are a little healthier,” Smith said. And Savvy’s vending machines are equipped to tell you just how much healthier your snack is. An LCD display affixed to the vending machine can tell you your snack’s nutrition and ingredient information as well as accept all forms of payment, including cash, credit/debit cards and mobile pay. The equipment can also text or email reimbursement if your snack gets stuck in the machine and remotely updates Savvy about stock levels, eliminating vending complaints.
Savvy’s water and ice services are also healthier than the average provider. The company’s systems feature three levels of filtration, resulting in water and ice that are 99 percent purified. “You can taste the difference immediately,” Smith said. The water and ice systems also tap directly into a building’s water source, eliminating exposure points, potential contamination and the need for bulky plastic containers.
In fact, all of Savvy’s services focus on reducing waste and energy consumption. “Being environmentally friendly is becoming more and more important,” Smith said, “especially with larger companies. We’re starting to see a lot more requests for information on how we are being environmentally responsible.”
Offering just a few examples of Savvy’s environmentally friendly practices, Smith said his vending machines are energy-star rated and Savvy’s coffee services virtually eliminate waste with reusable distribution methods and grind-on-site capabilities. The company’s water and ice systems also significantly reduce plastic waste.
Moving forward, Smith said Savvy will continue to look for ways to bring healthier and more environmentally friendly options to customers, especially in the Gwinnett County area. “We’re extremely invested in our community,” he said. “Breakroom services is a very hands-on job, so it makes sense to invest in clients that are located closer to our facilities. The closer we are to clients, the quicker we can respond. It’s our customer service, attention to detail and ability to enhance our customer’s experience that really makes Savvy stand out.”