If you manage a gym, hotel, bowling alley, or any business with steady daily foot traffic, your floor space is generating far less than it could. A soft serve kiosk placed in your venue earns you a commission on every sale — without any investment from you, without any staffing obligations, and without adding to your operational workload. This is what hosting a 99 Spoons kiosk looks like in practice.
What "Hosting" Actually Means
Hosting a kiosk means you provide the space and the foot traffic. The operator — the person who purchased the machine — provides everything else: the equipment, the product, the maintenance, the compliance, and the service. You sign a hosting agreement, designate a location on your floor, and ensure access to a standard electrical connection. That's the extent of your involvement.
The kiosk runs unattended. Your staff don't operate it, restock it, or clean it. When something needs attention, the operator handles it. You receive your commission percentage automatically, based on the machine's transaction data.
This is the clearest example of passive income for a venue owner: your existing asset — your floor space — produces revenue while adding nothing to your staff's workload.
The Commission Structure
Host venues receive a 20% commission on all sales generated by the kiosk. The machine tracks every transaction electronically; there's no manual counting or reporting required on your end. The 99 Spoons management platform provides transparency — you can see transaction volumes and confirm the figures behind your commission payments.
The actual commission amount depends entirely on how many transactions the machine processes, which is a function of your foot traffic and where the kiosk is positioned within your venue. A high-traffic bowling alley on weekends will generate more transactions than a small fitness studio on weekday mornings. The commission structure is the same regardless — 20% of whatever the machine earns.
Venues That Host Kiosks Successfully
Gyms and Fitness Centres
Gyms see a steady flow of members throughout the day, with peak periods before and after typical work hours. A soft serve kiosk 🍨 near the entrance or in the member lounge serves the post-workout treat moment — something members genuinely want after a training session. The automated format means no queuing at a staffed counter and no impact on your front-desk team.
Hotels
Hotel guests are a captive audience who eat, relax, and spend within the property. A kiosk in the lobby, near the pool, or in the corridor outside the restaurant serves guests at hours when the kitchen is closed and the options are otherwise limited. Hotels with families as a key guest segment tend to see particularly strong kiosk performance, as children consistently drive dessert purchases.
Bowling Alleys
Bowling alleys already understand the food-and-entertainment model — most have a bar, snack counter, or restaurant. A soft serve kiosk complements this without requiring additional staff. It serves the table of kids while their parents order at the bar, and it operates through the full extent of operating hours, including late-night sessions when staffed dessert counters are typically closed or winding down.
Entertainment Venues
Trampoline parks, arcades, indoor play centres — venues where families spend two to three hours and children make purchase requests repeatedly are ideal hosting environments. Families at entertainment venues are in a spending mindset, dwell time is long, and the purchase is an emotional one (treat for the kids, reward for good behaviour, birthday celebration). All of these conditions drive kiosk transactions.
Shopping Centres and Malls
Mall foot traffic is broad and consistent. A kiosk in a high-traffic corridor or near an anchor tenant captures shoppers who are already in a browsing and spending frame of mind. Mall operators and individual retailers within malls can both participate as hosts, depending on the specific arrangement.
What Hosts Don't Have to Do
This list matters as much as what hosts do receive:
- You do not purchase or lease the equipment
- You do not hire staff to operate the kiosk
- You do not buy or manage product inventory
- You do not handle food safety compliance or permits for the kiosk
- You do not manage customer service issues related to the machine
- You do not service or repair the equipment
Your obligation is to provide the space and the electrical connection. Everything beyond that belongs to the operator.
What the Conversation Looks Like
If you manage a venue and you're interested in hosting, the process starts with a straightforward conversation. 99 Spoons connects venue owners with operators who are actively looking for placement locations in your area. You describe your venue, your foot traffic, and your available space; the operator evaluates whether it's a fit for their deployment goals.
If there's a match, you sign a hosting agreement that defines the commission structure, the duration of the arrangement, and the basic obligations of each party. Installation is handled by the operator and takes a few hours. Once the machine is live, your involvement is essentially zero.
Visit the host a kiosk page to submit your venue details and start the conversation. You can also review the kiosk specs to understand the equipment's footprint and electrical requirements before reaching out.
Is Your Venue a Good Candidate?
The venues that make strong host candidates share a few common characteristics:
- Consistent daily foot traffic — the machine needs a regular customer base, not occasional surges
- Extended operating hours — longer hours mean more selling time per day
- An audience that includes families, young people, or workers who take breaks on site
- Available floor space in a visible, accessible location (not tucked in a corner)
- A standard electrical connection in or near the proposed placement area
If your venue has all of these, a hosted kiosk is likely worth pursuing. If foot traffic is thin or highly seasonal, the expected commission may not be significant enough to justify the floor space allocation. The 99 Spoons team can help you think through whether your specific situation is a strong fit before any commitment is made.
The Bottom Line for Venue Owners
Hosting a soft serve kiosk is one of the few genuine passive income arrangements available to a venue owner that requires no capital investment and adds no operational burden. Your floor space, your existing foot traffic, and your existing electrical infrastructure are all that's needed. The operator brings everything else — and shares 20% of what the machine earns with you in exchange for the placement.
For a gym, hotel, bowling alley, or entertainment venue already generating daily foot traffic, that's a straightforward arrangement to evaluate. Submit your venue details here to get started.