If you love pumpkin everything, this side hustle in NJ is for you

With inflation and rising costs everywhere, we’re always looking to make a few extra bucks wherever possible.

FinanceBuzz has a great side hustle to consider, but warning: you must love pumpkin and Trader Joe’s.

The company is looking for someone to help them taste and evaluate all the fall-inspired Pumpkin Palozza foods at Trader Joe’s.

That means you’ll eat your way through pumpkin waffles, pumpkin-flavored cereal, pumpkin-stuffed ravioli, pumpkin ice cream, donuts, coffee, and more, then write down what you think of these foods.

FinanceBuzz will then use market research to help shoppers decide which foods to budget for and which to skip.

The best part is, if you’re selected as the “Pumpkin Spice Pundit,” FinanceBuzz will pay you $1,000 for your work and give you a $500 gift card to shop for the pumpkin-everything products at Trader Joe’s.

“Groceries are an essential part of everyone’s budget, and usually a good chunk of your monthly spending too. It’s disappointing when you branch out, buy a new food to try, and it ends up being a letdown. We want shoppers to get the best finds while spending less on groceries,” according to FinanceBuzz.

The assignment is easy. You must live a Trader Joe’s where you can shop in person with the gift card sent to you. Since there are about 18 Trader Joe’s in New Jersey (Brick, Bridgewater, Cherry Hill, Clifton, Denville, Edgewater, Florham Park, Freehold, Hoboken, Marlton, Millburn, North Brunswick, Paramus, Princeton, Shrewsbury, Wayne, Westfield, and Westwood) there should be no issues finding one.

For each food sampled, the lucky winner, who must be at least 18 years old and lives in the U.S., will take a photograph of the item, write a brief description, and rate the food on several criteria. Then share the results on FinanceBuzz so shoppers can budget for only the best.

Applications are due by Aug. 28. The chosen candidate will be selected by Sept. 2 and contacted via email. The winner will have from Sept. 2 to Sept. 18 to sample Trader Joe’s fall foods and submit their ratings.

Happy Fall!

Jen Ursillo is a reporter and anchor for New Jersey 101.5. You can reach her at jennifer.ursillo@townsquaremedia.com

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