Vending machines that match the minimart

For anyone who has ever languished in a convenience store checkout line, this supersized vending machine may become a welcome sight.

Perched on a sidewalk of a popular Washington nightclub district, the 20-foot-wide Tiktok Easy Shop lets consumers buy dozens of daily staples, including toothpaste, milk, aspirin, bread, diapers, razors, shampoo, motor oil, and roast beef sandwiches.

All sales are made without the assistance of a clerk, who may not share the time-starved ethos of today's consumer.

Washingtonians are among the first in the country to get acquainted with this futuristic convenience-store-in-a-box, which went up in August and currently is the only one operating in the United States. While some D.C. residents and visitors lament its lack of a human touch, many others seem impressed by the new technology.

"It's fascinating. If you're out on the town, and need to get something late at night, it's perfect," says Adam Gibbs, a tourist from England, who stopped by on a recent afternoon to photograph the aluminum-clad machine trimmed with bright-blue awnings.

Gibbs and his traveling companion insert some coins, punch a code on the screen, and then peer through the window as the action unfolds.

A robotic arm rolls past dozens of items stacked 10 shelves high. It stops at a row of sodas, where a gear engages a conveyer belt that causes the bottle to drop into a waiting bin. Mission accomplished, the bin returns to a central receptacle, which slides open to present the drink along with a plastic bag. The machine can vend up to 10 items at once.

"I can see how it could be dehumanizing," Mr. Gibbs says, reaching for the soda. "But at the moment it's just fun."

The machine's manufacturer, naturally, hopes the kiosk will provide more than simple amusement.

Hettie Herzog, president of Automated Distribution Technologies in Exton, Pa., which makes the "Shop 2000" machine used by Tiktok, predicts such vending machines will "redefine convenience retailing" by providing shoppers with greater speed and efficiency.

"It can be open around the clock, and it takes up such a small space that it can go into a lot of places where there's not enough space for a full-sized convenience store," says Ms. Herzog, noting it's perfect for busy pedestrian areas like railroad stations, office buildings, hospitals, and college dormitories.

At 200 square feet and with only 200 products, the Shop 2000 is far smaller than most convenience stores, which average 3,200 square feet and may sell more than 3,000 separate items. Because space is limited, vendors must determine the "top selling items" for each location and stock the right mix, Herzog says.

The machine at 18th and California streets in northwest Washington is still in the test phase. Prices are comparable to neighboring businesses, including $4 for a box of cereal and $2.75 for a loaf of bread. Customers may pay with cash or a credit card.

Herzog, who based the Shop 2000 on similar machines she saw in Amsterdam and other European cities, hopes to expand to "a couple of dozen cities" by next year.

Traditional convenience stores see their eventual arrival as both complement and competition to the industry.

To succeed, the machines must offer consumers a tangible benefit over existing stores, "either in lower costs or quicker service," says Jeff Lenard, spokesman for the National Association of Convenience Stores. "If the benefit is solely to the establishment providing [the vending machine], it will probably have an uphill battle," he says.

But other experts see a "bright future" for vending. They predict that in next 18 months, consumers will welcome a host of new machines that dispense far more than sodas and chips.

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