Smoothies have been triumphing in the “drink game” as people throughout the world transition to healthier lifestyles, pushing soft drinks and sodas to the sidelines. Smoothies made just recently without any gluten are in higher demand. The majority, though, prefer not to go to the trouble of creating it from scratch. In the midst of the chaos, few people have the time or patience to create smoothies.
Brothers Stuart and Peter Shapiro appeared on ABC’s “Shark Tank” during Season 14, Episode 18 to present a secure and automated solution for fresh smoothies that can be created in less a minute. A cutting-edge smoothie vending machine called Bleni Blends creates a variety of flavours of nutritious smoothies in under a minute. With such an intriguing product on display, we became curious to find out more about the business, and this is what we discovered!
Bleni: Who Are They and What Do They Do?
In 2019, brothers Stuart and Peter Shapiro established the smoothie vending machine Bleni Blends. The business owners, who have years of experience in the food, beverage, and contactless delivery businesses, enlisted some of the brightest minds to build a vending machine that provides delectable, wholesome smoothies made from real fruit in just 60 seconds. The development of the technology by the Bleni Blends developers was aided by their exposure to analogous unattended retail technologies and their unmatched knowledge of consumer preferences, business operations, sales, machine maintenance, and entire self-serve kiosk solutions.
The Shapiro brothers have a long history of employment in the food and beverage sector. At Tulane University, Stuart earned a Bachelor of Science in General Business Administration and Management. Stuart started working at the Shapiro Law Office PC, a family law business that focuses on the rights of creditors, where he held positions as a legal assistant, an accounts receivable manager, and eventually the department head for negotiations. He teamed up with Peter in 2015 to purchase both short-term and long-term houses in the Pennsylvania Pocono regions.
Over a four-year period, Stuart and Peter owned, managed, and sold 15 rental homes in the Pocono Mountains. They founded Robotic Desserts, LLC in 2016 as the owner-operator of the Reis & Irvy’s frozen yoghurt robot in the Greater Philadelphia area. Peter graduated from Tulane University with a Bachelor of Science in General Business Administration and Management. Later, he graduated from Temple University with an MBA. Peter began his academic career in New Orleans at Tulane University.
As the Vice President of Enrollment Management, Peter oversaw 30 personnel in the Office of Undergraduate Admissions. Shortly after hurricane Katrina, he founded Four Seasons Investments, LLC with the intention of purchasing and disposing of distressed receivables. The Bleni Blends smoothie vending machine, which the siblings introduced in 2019, produces smoothies with genuine fruits in just 60 seconds. Only smoothies sans dairy are created by this machine, albeit some of them do contain oat milk. This machine can operate for up to 24 continuous hours and is completely cashless.
Where is Bleni Now?
Bleni Blends has enjoyed tremendous market success since its 2019 launch. The seven different smoothie variations that the turquoise vending machines produce on demand are made with strawberries, bananas, mangos, pineapples, spinach, berries, coffee, and chocolate. Before making a purchase, consumers may examine the nutrition facts on the 16-oz cups of dairy-free sweet treats. Although prices can vary amongst vending machines, a Bleni Blends smoothie usually costs $5.50. The 12-square-foot mixing kiosk just requires one electrical plug-in and is a little larger than the average vending machine.
Each vending machine is cashless and accepts credit, debit, Apple Pay, Google Wallet, and a few campus cards from colleges in addition to cash. The Shapiro brothers are hoping that their appearance on “Shark Tank” would help them build their brand and attract more suppliers and companies willing to place the vending machines in airports, colleges, and healthcare institutions. The company is mostly self-funded; Bleni Blends operates seventeen vending machines throughout the greater Philadelphia region, highlighting the area’s major healthcare providers.
51 sites, including malls, airports, museums, hospitals, and universities, have this gadget installed. There are now two iced coffees and five fresh smoothies available. This equipment was purchased by the Methodist Dallas Medical Center at Weber State University in February 2022. In September 2022, the inventor demonstrated their innovation with Compass Group USA. We hope Peter and Stuart are anticipating creating and stocking test versions of new products soon. It is beautiful to see Bleni Blends go to the top, and we have no doubt that business will continue to prosper in the years to come.
