How some moms supplement income working for grocery shopping apps like Instacart
The art of the side hustle may not always be as easy as it seems, but some moms are finding flexible jobs that offer a little financial boost and allow them to work hours that also work for their families.
Hilary Gordon has a lot to take care of at her home in Sacramento, California -- three kids, a mini pig, two chickens and four dogs -- but she found a job that has helped her strike a balance between the hustle and bustle of parenting and earn extra money.
Gordon, who first told her story to NPR, works as a shopper for the delivery app Instacart, which is a service where someone shops for other people's groceries and delivers it to their door. It's similar to the flexibility of ride sharing services, users can be their own boss and set their own schedule, but in this case don't have to drive any strangers in their car.
"I was looking for a way to make some extra income," she told ABC News. "With three kids, I don't have a ton of free time, but I could do something if it was -- economically feasible and worth it."
Instacart and other food delivery companies like Doordash, Postmates and Shipt, pay tens of thousands of workers to deliver packages, food or groceries across the U.S.
The shopping and delivery app that Gordon currently works for said that more than 50% of their shoppers are female, according to a NPR survey in April. Similarly, Postmates showed that 48% of its workers are female and 38% of their workers overall are mothers, according to the NPR survey.
Doordash said women make up more than half of its shoppers in rural and suburban areas.
"I love the flexibility," Gordon, 47, said. "I do this around my kids' schedule."
Ericka Souter, editor at Mom.me, told ABC News that flexible part-time work like shopping deliveries are beneficial from both a family and financial aspect.
"There are so many moms out there looking for a side hustle to kind of help beef up their family income and this is an easy way to do it," Souter said. "The best thing about it is that you can make your own schedule so if your kid gets sick or you have to go to a ballet recital or a little league game you can put work to the side ... and then when your ready to work again, you can pick it right back up."
Gordon can accept or deny the jobs that come up on her app while she's working. If she chooses she could deny a job that is lower paying or one that is too far of a drive.
She also has the ability to make sure her schedule allows time to take care of her family.
"I think, overall, the flexibility and the enjoyment of it makes it worth my while," she said.
In the last year, Gordon guessed that she has made about $31,000, before taking into account gas, mileage or wear and tear on her car.
"I do love shopping, and I think it's kinda fun to shop with other people's money," she admitted laughing.
