Personal Shoppers

The U.S. Department of Labor reports that overall employment in personal care and service occupations (including personal shoppers) is projected to grow faster than the average for all occupations from 2023 to 2033. However, personal shopping is a new business development, so anyone embarking on the career will be taking some serious risks. There is not a lot of research available about the career, and no real sense of the career's future. The success of Internet commerce will probably have a big effect on the future of personal shopping. Some personal shoppers currently with Web sites offer consultation via e-mail or via online video communication platforms and help people purchase products online.

To attract the widest variety of clients, personal shoppers should offer as expansive a service as they can. Professional organizing is being recognized as one of the top home businesses for the future; the membership of the National Association of Productivity and Organizing Professionals is growing each year. Personal assistants and personal concierges, those who run errands for others, and virtual assistants, those who provide professional services to businesses and individuals in a virtual environment rather than a traditional office, have also caught the attention of industry experts, and programs are available to assist people who are interested in entering these fields.