A man teaching in Florida quit his job to become a full-time shopper and says he doubled his salary.
Ed Hennessey taught at Oviedo High School, never making more than $50,000 a year. He said he now makes over $100,000 a year shopping for groceries.
Hennessey said that it was tough to leave his job teaching students during a visit to his old classroom where he taught for 20 years.
Hennessey said that paying off his student loans and supporting two children forced him to always have a second job besides teaching.
It was the last second job that led to his career switch. Working for Shipt for several years part-time, he realized he could easily turn it into a full-time gig and make a lot more money. He took a sabbatical from teaching to make sure, and after a year of full-time shopping, he retired from teaching at age 45.
According to Shipt, customers order whatever they want from a grocery store and the shoppers go to pick it up. Customers connect with shoppers via text and can make adjustments to their orders as the shopper shops.
“It’s so relaxing. I get to go out and I’m outside all the time. I see people and I’m my own boss. I am who I want to be,” Hennessey told WESH.
Hennessey said he typically works 50 to 60 hours a week and doesn’t get summers off any longer, though the Shipt site notes that some shoppers do work part-time, as Hennessey did for several years.