We tried the new vending machines at Manchester Arndale selling cupcakes

manchestereveningnews.co.uk:

There are two new vending machines in Manchester Arndale like no other the city has seen before. With bold pink and brown stripes catching the eye of passers-by as they rush through the bustling shopping centre, the Amura vending machines are already proving popular.

Forget cans of Coke, chocolate bars or bags of crisps. These vending machines sell six varieties of the same thing - cupcakes.

Sitting opposite Subway and around the corner from Aldi, the two huge touchscreens have been drawing shoppers' attention in since they were installed on Saturday (July 30). The machines have completely sold out on two occasions so far since being switched on, and as the Manchester Evening News went to check them out on Friday lunchtime two flavours were already out of stock.

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Manchester Arndale is only the second location to get an Amura vending machine, following on from the Bullring in Birmingham, and the company hopes to install more elsewhere soon. It is the brainchild of Tommy Coddington and Daniel Roberts, who came up with the idea of introducing artisan vegan cupcakes to the automated technology market in October 2020.

The products are baked elsewhere and brought to the vending machines, where they are restocked to keep items fresh and keep up with demand. There are six flavours to choose from - vanilla, chocolate, salted caramel, coffee, lemon and raspberry, and cookies and cream.

Each costs £3.50, or £3.75 for the cookies and cream variety, while there are discounts available for customers buying multiple items. Those prices mean the Amura cupcake is more expensive than you would find in a supermarket.

It is also slightly dearer than