Vending shelf

A merchandise dispensing apparatus for deterring theft, comprising:

• a housing comprising a plurality of walls defining an interior space within the housing;
• at least one merchandise support module mounted in the housing, the at least one module comprising an electro-mechanical ejector mechanism located adjacent a front end of the at least one module, the ejector mechanism including:
• an ejector housing,
• an electrical motor mounted to the ejector housing and including an output shaft,
• an ejector plate mounted to the ejector housing and movably mounted in relation to the ejector housing and having a retracted position and an extended position,
• a biasing member mounted to the ejector housing and adapted to directly contact the ejector plate and bias the ejector plate linearly into its extended position, the biasing member having a compressed state corresponding to the retracted position of the ejector plate and an expanded state corresponding to the extended position of the ejector plate,
• a gear train located within the ejector housing and connecting the output shaft of the motor to the ejector plate,
• a relay for selectively providing electrical power to the motor, and
• a user input member for selectively operating the motor via the relay,
• wherein the ejector plate further comprises a latch member located in the ejector housing for retaining the ejector plate in the retracted position against the bias of the biasing member.