Out of work sisters find a different way to post a paycheck
CARY, N.C. (WTVD) -- Out of work and basically out of school, three sisters helped reinvigorate a West Cary neighborhood. What started as a project at home morphed into a mailbox-painting side hustle that continues to deliver.
Mom wanted sisters Ashlyn, Marina and Sydney Wright to paint their mailbox. That sparked an idea--and rising Panther Creek sophomore Sydney noticed a need.
"We could actually make a business out of this, because I saw most of my neighbors and their boxes are a little messed up," Sydney said.
With all three forced out of work because of the stay-at-home order, the sisters found a perfect way to make up the lost income.
"Everything was on hold for my work because I work at a restaurant and restaurants weren't allowed to be open at that time," UNC student Marina, who was also employed at a shut down restaurant, said. "We had really not a lot to do so since all of our classes were online and were only a few hours a day, so we had a lot of free time on our hands and we wanted to keep ourselves busy."
Sanding, scraping and painting has kept the sisters occupied. The girls have refinished 75 mailboxes and counting at $35 a pop, making more than they would have otherwise.
The sisters said they usually complete between five and eight mailboxes daily--sometimes more on weekends.
The three have learned a lot about painting, establishing roles and working together. Aside from some bickering which is understandable, the experience has been a pleasant surprise.
They said though they've lived in the neighborhood for more than 10 years, the business has given them the opportunity to learn the area and meet neighbors who have lived nearby for years.
The sisters now envision staying in business together. Their work is solid enough to get additional business away from the curb. One neighbor wants to pay them to have a backyard playset painted for even bigger bucks.
