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Aldi customer reveals how she earnt $100 shopping at supermarket: ‘Going to do it again’

Sunshine Coast woman Amy Coulston said she was able to make $100 by mystery shopping at local Aldi stores.

Tamika Seeto
·Finance Reporter
Updated ·4-min read
Amy Coulston and Aldi
Amy Coulston has shared her experience mystery shopping at Aldi and said she was able to make $100 in two and a half hours. (Source: TikTok)

An Aussie woman has shared how she made some extra cash by shopping at Aldi. Mystery shopping can be a lucrative side hustle idea and a number of Aussies are jumping on the trend.

Amy Coulston said she was able to earn $100 by anonymously shopping at local Aldi stores. The 24-year-old told Yahoo Finance she completed five mystery shopping jobs for $20 each in two and a half hours, netting her about $40 an hour.

“For this one, I needed to take a backpack to an Aldi store, ask floor staff a question of my choosing, and then purchase any product,” Coulston said.

“Then once you're back in the car, fill out a report stating if my bag was checked, if a catalogue was offered and rating the general friendliness of the staff.”

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The Sunshine Coast resident said she used the platform Mystery Management to find the jobs and said it was her first time using the site.

“The jobs get added about a month in advance on Mystery Management which is quite different to other mystery shopping sites,” she explained.

“You pick a day that suits you and you're able to apply for those jobs. Once you do that, you'll get an email approving your application after a day or two - all super straightforward.”

Coulston noted she was not reimbursed for the items she purchased at Aldi, so she bought low-cost items or things she already needed at home.

Amy Coulston and Aldi mystery shopping
Coulston said she had to wear a backpack, ask floor staff a question and purchase any item. (Source: TikTok)

Coulston has been sharing her journey making money through side hustles on social media.

She previously told Yahoo Finance she had managed to double her income and make $90,000 purely through side hustles, including market research, surveys and mystery shopping.

She recently quit her job in administration and is now focusing on doing side hustles full-time.

Do you have a side hustle story to share? Contact tamika.seeto@yahooinc.com

Mystery Management owner Louise Heffernan said that Aussies could earn money by anonymously shopping at a range of stores, including Aldi and Subway, and reporting back on their experience.

“There’s a whole heap of different things and anyone can do it. It’s a good way to make extra money,” Heffernan told Yahoo Finance.

“So we’ve got school teachers, police officers, uni students, stay-at-home mums, retirees, you name it, they work for us.

“Anybody can be a mystery shopper. Our oldest mystery shopper was 81 and she just recently retired."

Mystery shoppers are assigned specific jobs to do at certain stores or establishments. They then report back on their experience, including things like customer service and the cleanliness of the store.

Heffernan said tasks can pay between $20 and $300.

Aussies flooded the comments of Coulston’s video to share their own experiences with mystery shopping.

“Did mystery shopping at Aldi as well! From mystery management it's a pretty good side hustle,” one said.

“Worth it! I did SmartSpotter before and after work today, and if all gets approved it was $50+. Looking at doing a 9-day fortnight and this on the side. It’s like a treasure hunt,” another added.

Others said the side hustle could be difficult if you lived in regional areas or didn't live close to the stores in question.

“I've worked for these guys, they do pay you, but being regional I find it hard to justify the time out of my day to drive to go earn $25,” one wrote.

“I did their jobs a few times but the admin was too much for the pay,” another added.

Coulston said she thought the side hustle was worth it for her and was planning to do it again.

“I already have my jobs booked for next month so I'm definitely going to do it again,” she told Yahoo Finance.

“I think it's worth it if you can do a few on one day in a circuit, I smashed out 5 in a few hours so I think that made it worthwhile for me.”

Coulston shared she also used sites Field Agent, SmartSpotter and Snooper for mystery shopping.

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