By Andy Furman
NKyTribune reporter
Call it happenstance – honest. It really was – in fact it was probably meant to be. How else could you explain it?
Harrison Baer, a 25-year-old self-proclaimed entrepreneur, unveiled his “dream” at Dreamys in Union (Beaver Road) Tuesday evening.
Baer’s dream is The Mystery Machine – and it’s not his first – it’s number three. It was a match made in dreamy heaven – a faraway place in which Harrison Baer seems to live.
“I lived in Chicago the first 21 years of my life,” he told the Northern Kentucky Tribune, “and came to Cincinnati here three years ago.”
That move was prompted by his nine siblings – they all live in the tri-state area.
“I sold cars for Enterprise at the Airport, in Norwood and Mason,” the Hillsdale College grad said. “I knew I wanted to work for myself.”
So, as with all ideas, this one, he said, started as a “crazy concept” while talking to his brother.
“I wanted to create a vending machine with actually no real choice. Put in your money and get a random drink. And, of course a lot of people thought I was crazy,” he said. “I thought it would be neat if you could choose your category of drinks, and a mystery drink would appear.”
Apparently, Baer was the only one who thought the idea had any merit back in June of 2024.
“I pitched it to 11 different businesses, and they all laughed it off,” he said.
But it only takes one – and that one was the Creamy Whip in Norwood.
“That was my first Mystery Machine,” he said. “People prefer the novelty of not knowing what drink they’ll get. People need that little twist.”
Baer says he purchased his machines – they look like any other soda vending machine – on-line from Sam’s Club. As for the art work on the machines, that’s easy.
“My sister (Salem Molina) is a graphic designer,” he said.
Baer has big ideas, and claims he’d like to go national, maybe even global with his Mystery Machine someday. He says he’s doing well – but what does that really mean?
“An average vending machine,” he said, “Will do about $300 per-month. “Our Mystery Machines, so far, are doing about five-to-six times that.”
Why?
“People want to see what drink might pop up next,” Baer said. “So they keep feeding the Mystery Machine.”
The Bold Face Dairy Bar was location No. 2. Baer claims he likes outdoors for his machines.
“This way,” he says, “people can have 24-hour access.”
The machines accept credit cards, debit cards, cash, coins, or a tap of your phone for purchase.
And if you’re inclined to try; the menu looks like this:
• The Original Mystery – $2 (there are two rows of Original Mystery)
• Caffeine Free Mystery – $2
• Diet and Sugar Free Mystery – $2
• International Mystery – $2.75
• Energy Mystery – $3.50
• Sparkling Water Mystery – $2.50
• Bottled Mystery — $3.00
And of course, for those who are just plain boring – there’s always Coke and Diet Coke.
“But we have over 1,000 different drink possibilities,” he said.
“The International Mystery drinks are the most popular,” Baer said. “People just want to see what comes out of the machine, and from where.”
He says he gets his drinks from some 30 different locations and 10 on-line distributors.
“I try to find the craziest drinks for a novel experience,” he said.
Baer’s brother – Davis – just joined as an investor, claims President, CEO and inventor Harrison, who says they work out of their Norwood home. The business has a strong social media buzz with 1,830 followers on Tik Tok and 1,280 on Instagram
What they’re working on is a fourth location. Covington, get ready.