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In the hometown of the first instant coffee (in 1901), another affront to coffee purists was introduced: the vending machine. Here at the National Automatic Merchandising Association convention, businessmen drooled over the machines that could replace people during a testy time for labor. Employers discovered another benefit: Having a vending machine handy kept coffee breaks short while giving workers a productivity-boosting buzz.
Only U.S. state lacking a Starbucks: South Dakota.
Cost of six minutes of shaving with an electric razor affixed to a vending machine in 1950, including lotion: 25 cents.
Percentage decline in coffee drinkers ages 18 to 24 from 2002 to 2003, a period of high unemployment in that age group: 46.
