anyone full time exclusively merchandise?

looking to go 'full time' in a couple of months. got a regular gig that's 10-15 hours, sometimes bumped to 30. thinking if I can look around and find 2 more companies that give me the same amount I can pull it off, especially if they are in the same area.

anyone else do this? if I can't swing it I guess I can sign up with some mystery shopping companies and use them to fill in the holes in my schedule.

anyone?

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More About Merchandising

I merchandise full time and fill in additional spots with mystery shopping and audits. Be careful with doing a lot of mystery shopping that requires reimburseable purchases as it may take a few weeks to receive your money back.

This is a slow time of year for merchandising, so if you are able to get that many hours from several companies now, what do you plan to do when they all want 30 from you during 4th quarter? Be careful about spreading yourself too thin and alienating companies by not being able to complete assignments or blowing through them and making mistakes.

If you want to be a full time merchandiser, it is best to find a company that hires for full time positions.

Former mystery shopper, current merchandiser.

Yeah, I'm aware of 4th quarter. My one company let's me trade assignments with other reps so if push comes to shove I can give them some.

If I run across full time I'd grab it probably

Sometimes other reps are also spread too thin 4th quarter. I'm sure if you start working for a few companies now, you will have a favorite to prioritize for 4th quarter and "let the chips fall where they may" otherwise.

Former mystery shopper, current merchandiser.

I merchandise with several companies. During the slower months I fill in with mystery shopping. It's nice to have choices. Why not do both?

~~*~~*~~*~~ kal ~~*~~*~~*~~
Everyone has a photographic memory. Some just forget to load the film.

I was with a full time merchandising company for three years. The stress of my boss hounding me about every single detail was driving me insane, so I left and am much happier being an independent contractor.

This is a very busy time of year for me with merchandising jobs. One of the reasons is that I do cosmetic resets. There are a ton this time of year!
I work for multiple companies. The trick is to find jobs that work well together. I have one that is consistent (almost) year round work that is not locked in to specific days (so I can flex it around a bit).
The cosmetics resets are heaviest this time of year and then again starting in June. 4th quarter is very slim for that kind of work.
I have a WM dedicated job that is pretty consistent but can get busier 4th quarter.
I also pick up some project work as filler on occasion.
Can you work full time hours with merchandising....yes, and you can do it with one company or multiple companies.

Good luck in finding your perfect balance of work!

Yeah its a delicate balancing act. I want the flexibility and am willing to work 60 hours a week during busy times, no problem
Its just a process of finding a mixture of regular stores close to each other.

Mystery shopping when 8ts slow is a great idea.

Yes. It's a trial and error process. I work with three companies weekly which average 25 hours a week for the last 3-4 weeks of the month. The first week I get 30. I am working on adding a fourth but have failed 2 times already. This will be the second week with a fourth company. This week I had a bout of food poisoning whice created havoc and prior two weeks I had car trouble. So when push comes to shove you need to decide which companies take priority because no one has your back. But the freedom is what I enjoy the most

shopping north west PA and south west ny

I do this full time with a few companies and I love it. It takes dedication and balance.

I currently work as an IC for three companies (one merchandising and two mystery shopping?audits). My primary source for work is Castforce and I am able to get all the work I can handle and have a steady income stream between $1500 and $2000 each month for 10 months out of the year (Jan and Feb are always slow). The other two I do restaurant mystery shopping and unannounced store audits for. Every day I get to each lunch and get paid plus get my meal reimbursed, and most weeks I can hit several convenience stores and keep my tank full (reimbursed of course). It has taken three years to get to this point but it can be done.

I always think of myself as an independent contractor but received 6 W-2's last year. Most of these jobs required me to schedule myself in a 5 to 10 day window and I never missed one.
One company likes to schedule me for a morning or afternoon of a given day. I may have to stop working for them because it's really inefficient to schedule around them.
I've been hitting +/- $2,000 / month after expenses for 25ish hours per week in the field and 4 to 8 hours at my desk.
Resets don't work for me but I do a lot of 15 minute to 2 hour projects maintaining and repairing electronic displays as well as updating displays. It's fun and interesting work and I'm always looking for more.
Good luck

@cooldude581 wrote:

This week I had a bout of food poisoning whice created havoc and prior two weeks I had car trouble. So when push comes to shove you need to decide which companies take priority because no one has your back.

This is another problem with making part-time jobs full-time: No benefits. No paid sick or vacation days, so when you are out you don't get paid and also have to scramble to make up the missed projects.

Former mystery shopper, current merchandiser.

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anyone full time exclusively merchandise?

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