St. Pete couple, Chance Ryan and Kayla Cox, wants to change your perspective of vending machines.
Not the ordinary snack boxes you see at the office, Lucid Vending, founded by Cox and Ryan in 2020, curate vending machines that sell local art, scavenger hunts, games and all the coolest stuff they can find from makers throughout Tampa Bay.
But you won’t find Lucid Vending machines in some Big Box store or the mall. Ryan and Cox custom design and hand-paint their machines to be placed at local bars and buzzing businesses with a late-night scene and a lot of foot traffic.
Ryan and Cox conceptualized Lucid Vending early last year while the couple was still living in St. Augustine.
Frustrated with the perils of selling her art at markets and online platforms, Cox said she began searching for a better alternative.
She learned about a similar creative vending machine company, The Venderia, based in Portland, OR and became fascinated with the concept.
“Not always having to go to markets and ship items online to sell my art seemed ideal,” Cox said. “It also frees up my time so I can focus on creating, while the machine does all the work selling.”
Once the pandemic hit, Ryan and Cox decided to relocate to St. Pete and try out Lucid Vending.
“St. Pete has always been on our radar,” Ryan said. “It’s such a creative, artistic city, with a lot of mojo, right now.”
They bought a couple of used vending machines and set off pitching their idea to local businesses.
Finally, Mike Crippin, owner of The Studio Public House, agreed to house a machine.
“Whether he knows it or not, Mike took a gamble on us,” Ryan said. Studio Public House “became the beta testing for our business model.”
That was December 2020, Ryan said. Today, there are eight Lucid Vending machines throughout Tampa Bay.
There’s five in the Grand Central District alone: Studio Public House, Hawthorne Bottle Shoppe, Coastal Creative, Dog Bar St. Pete and, most recently, Cocktail St Pete.
The other machines can be found at Crooked Thumb Brewery, in Safety Harbor, Studios 5663, an artist’s studio in Pinellas Park and Twisted Tiki, a restaurant in St. Pete Beach.
Ryan and Cox said they don’t plan to slow down anytime soon. They have their sights set on Tampa, Dunedin and Sarasota.
“The more machines we have, the more local art we can sell,” Ryan said.
“We’re already designing machines for two businesses in Tampa and one in Dunedin,” Cox said.
They hope to have fifteen machines placed by the end of the year.
Lucid Vending machines are free to businesses and they pay rent for the small space they need.
After a design concept is agreed on, it’s on to the challenge of cleaning out and upgrading an old vending machine before Cox can begin the custom paint job.
“These machines are pretty beat up and heading for the landfill,” Ryan said. “They need a lot of work, but once we’re done with them, it’s like a brand new machine and they look really cool.”
Machines are rewired and equipped with new microprocessors, LED lighting and credit card readers.
Cox says the true value of the machines to businesses and artists is that they’re like a work of art themselves.
“They’re engaging and entertaining,” she said. “People are drawn to them. There’s something exciting and magical about getting stuff out of a vending machine.“
Cox said she enjoys the opportunity Lucid Vending provides her to work with the art community and local business owners.
“These machines are community-driven and each machine is designed to fit the vibe of the location and to suit their clientele.”
Dog Bar St. Pete, for instance, keeps dog treats and tug toys stocked. The Studio Public House is more family-friendly, so they do their best to include items for kids.
Machine locations that are 21 plus, tend to carry more provocative art and eccentric items such as custom hangover kits, decoupage flasks and drinking games.
“These are essentially adult vending machines,” Ryan said. “We’re trying to get the party started.”
Lucid Vending also promises to promote participating businesses’ specials and events via social media.
“At the end of the day, their success is our success,” Ryan said.
Another thing they find appealing about the machines is they’re community-driven, Cox said. Machines carry an ever-revolving series of art.
“We seek out local artists and creatives with more of an alternative, lucid perspective,” Cox said. “We like to have items in there that are funky and weird, but also artistic and thought-provoking.”
Cox found Kris Meenan on Instagram and reached out to her about putting her work in their machines.
Meenan said she was gracious for the opportunity.
The experience has been “literally life changing,” she said.
“Before Kayla contacted me back in December, I wasn’t really doing much with my art,” Meenan said.
From the exposure Meenan gained exhibiting her work in Lucid Vending machines, she said she’s been able to pursue art full time.
Most recently, Meenan as had her work displayed at Five Deuces Gallery and at Coastal Creative.
Two years ago Cassie Mrotek moved to St. Pete from California and founded her own business Astra Aromatherapy.
Mrotek said she met Ryan while she was doing a pop-up event along Central Ave. and he asked if she would be interested in making something metaphysical to sell in the vending machines.
“My brain just went into this mode where it’s like, all right, everything I create from now on, I need to figure out how to put it in vending machines,” Mrotek said.
You can find Mrotek’s mini smudge kits at most Lucid Vending machines.
For information, find @Lucid.Vending on Instagram or email [email protected].
