“Bizarre” Condom Machine Leaves Students Stumped
Words by Francesca Pietkiewicz (she/they) and Ethan Manera (he/him)
An old-fashioned, coin operated condom vending machine found in bathrooms at the first floor of the Student Union Building has left students confused about why it exists and where it came from.
The men's bathroom hosts the mysterious condom vessel, while the nearby women’s bathroom has a similar machine selling “sanitary towels” and tampons each for $2.
The machines appear to be a relic of the past, now seemingly redundant as both condoms and menstrual products are provided for free by VUWSA and Mauri Ora in the same building.
Although it advertises Lifestyles branded condoms, when a Salient staff member tried to purchase the penile protection, a strange, Saxon Vending branded condom was dispensed.
We tracked down the man behind the contraceptive trade—56-year-old co-owner of Saxon Vending Ltd, Andrew—to get some answers.
Andrew told Salient that he took ownership of the machines 5 years ago and they were previously operated by another business. Andrew didn’t know how long the machines had been there for.
“We probably go through 30 or 40 condoms every three months. It's a well used machine,” Andrew said
Although Andrew said he has personally “never worn a condom”, he wanted to sell “studded” condoms, imported from Austria, to offer a more “premium product”.
Andrew told us that despite the condom machine being well utilised, the sanitary towels and tampons are not as popular, saying, “it's clearly a male, female thing”.
VUWSA aren't so sure about the machines, however, President Jessica Ye said it’s “unnecessary” and she’s “unsure why it's still there”. Jess urged students to utilise the free condoms and menstrual products that VUWSA provides.
When informed about the bowl of free condoms merely 10 metres from the machine at Mauri Ora, Andrew said, “If it was me I'd be using the free ones, but not everyone's like me.” He is pleased that students use the machine, saying that the condom vending trade is financially thriving. “We've got around 500 machines around the country,” he said.