Vernon Pereira looked at the outdated office vending machine and saw a business waiting to happen. Through MVP Amenities in Fort Wayne, he installs AI-powered smart coolers stocked with fresh salads, sandwiches, pastries, premium drinks, and snacks, offered to host businesses at no cost. Vernon’s team handles the hardware, monitors inventory around the clock through remote AI telemetry, and keeps the coolers restocked, so all a facility provides is the floor space. The model is built for high-volume workplaces like manufacturing plants, corporate offices, and 24/7 healthcare facilities, giving shift workers round-the-clock access to real food without leaving the building. The early results are strong: his first cooler, placed at a local automotive facility, generated over $1,200 and more than 300 transactions in its first month.
With support from the Fortitude Fund, Vernon is using the grant as bridge capital to stock and deploy two newly signed locations, funding the first fill of inventory and the logistics to get the machines installed. His vision is to become Northeast Indiana’s go-to unattended retail provider, with 30 or more active locations across the region.
