A system for the sale of consumer goods, wherein the system comprises a device for providing a customer with a non-validated token that represents an article of merchandise. The article is to be paid for by the customer at a checkout unit when the token is checked by said unit. Said checkout unit has a means for providing a validated token that bears a transaction code. Said checkout unit has a means for communicating with an article dispensing device and providing the article dispensing device with said transaction code after the article has been paid for. The validated token is used to obtain the purchased article from the article dispensing device with the aid of a comparator device within the article dispensing device which compares the transaction code on the validated token with the transaction code communicated by said communication device, wherein the article dispensing device delivers the purchased article when there is a defined code correspondence.