12 Most Off-the-Wall Ways People Have Admitted To Making Money

Stephanie Allen

Man counting money

People are always looking for ways to make money. Whether it’s a full-time or part-time job, a gig, or a side hustle, the goal is to make a lot of dough. Most of these occupations are traditional, but some people have made a lot of money going off the beaten path. A few people online disclosed how they or people they know have made money, and it may inspire you to try your luck at something new.

1. Trampoline Importer

Trampolines
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One commenter in the thread recalls how, 30-plus years ago, a family friend from Norway visited Texas and noticed every yard had a trampoline. He bought ten trampolines and took them back to Norway with him. He sold them all within a few days and ordered 50 more. They quickly sold out, too. From there, he became an importer of trampolines in his country, which must have made him a fortune.

2. Custom Candy Wrappers

Hershey’s Chocolate
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A very wealthy man made his fortune in custom candy wrappers, says a commenter in the discussion. He buys Hershey chocolate bars in bulk and covers the original wrappers with customized wrappers of company logos for event giveaways or retirement celebrations. He doubles or triples what he spends with what amounts to pieces of printed paper.

3. Tumbleweeds

Tumbleweeds
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After developing a business plan in college to sell tumbleweeds (yes, tumbleweeds), a dropout started his own tumbleweed sales business. He drives his van into the desert and collects tumbleweeds, which he sells to Hollywood television and movie studios who need them for set design. He stores them in a warehouse, and since they never go bad, his only overhead costs are storage, transportation, and maintaining his website.

4. Household Assistance

Janitor cleaning wash basin
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Several members of the online community tell of people they know who make a living performing unique tasks around the households of the ultra-rich. One man earns money flushing toilets, driving the cars at rich people's second, third, and fourth homes, and ordering groceries before they arrive. Another earns $50,000 a year to bring their packages from outside the house to the indoors.

5. Unwanted Goods

Unwanted furnitures for sale
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Someone in the discussion had a friend who lived in a college town, and at the end of each semester, she would drive around the off-campus housing where the more affluent students lived and collect whatever they threw out before moving or going home for the summer. They would throw out new furniture, flat-screen televisions, and computers. She would collect their “trash” and sell it on Craigslist for a profit.

6. Hotel Testers

Woman eating in hotel
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Believe it or not, people spend their vacations in luxury hotels for pay. They’re similar to secret shoppers in that the hotels do not know who these guests are. Their job is to stay at a hotel and provide a review and rating of their services, amenities offered, and facilities. Getting paid to go on vacation sounds like the perfect career.

7. Beach Rentals

Coronado Beach, California
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There is good money to be made by renting equipment to beachgoers. Somebody earns $90,000 annually, renting out beach chairs, umbrellas, and surfboards to beachgoers. If that isn’t a good enough deal, they also get to spend their days on the beach all day. They eventually expanded their operation to a second beach, doubling their profits.

8. Tea Bag Strings

Tea Bags
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If you’ve ever made a cup of tea, you’ve noticed the little string attached to the tag, which allows you to safely remove the tea bag from the hot water after it’s steeped. Some companies manufacture those strings. And some very wealthy families own those companies. Amazingly, massive wealth comes from something so small.

9. Kleenex Pop-Ups

Kleenex tissue
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According to a user in the forum, when they were a child, they noticed that a large mansion was located near their father’s workplace. They asked their father who lived in the house, and he said the owner was the person who invented how Kleenex tissues are folded to allow another tissue to pop up when a tissue is pulled out.

10. Friends and Personal Paparazzi

Paparazzi
Image Credit: Shutterstock.

People who want someone to talk to, accompany them to events, or for general companionship can hire professional friends to fulfill those roles. Clients can also pay personal paparazzi to follow them around and take their photographs in different public settings, similar to how the paparazzi follow celebrities and take their pictures.

11. Discontinued Scents

Bath & Body Works scent
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One user’s aunt found a way to make a considerable profit off discontinued items. She would buy many Bath & Body Works products in a scent about to be discontinued. Once the scent was unavailable in stores, she would resell them on eBay. She made close to $50,000 a month in sales, all from customers eager to buy certain scents.

12. Racing Pigeon Supplements

Homing pigeon in home loft
Image Credit: Shutterstock.

In cultures worldwide, homing pigeon races are an important pastime and a very lucrative one, as people bet on which pigeon will win a given race. One of the ways to make money from the homing pigeon races is to sell pigeon supplements to the birds’ owners. Homing pigeon owners care for their birds, and supplement sales are typical.

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Source: Reddit.

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