{"id":5813,"date":"2026-07-30T05:37:22","date_gmt":"2026-07-30T05:37:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=5813"},"modified":"2026-07-30T05:37:22","modified_gmt":"2026-07-30T05:37:22","slug":"east-bay-woman-among-those-to-be-counted-solidly-in-favor-of-gig-work","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=5813","title":{"rendered":"East Bay woman among those to be counted solidly in favor of gig work"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
When her household finally quiets down each evening, Brandi Fresquez begins another shift that often stretches until 3 a.m., washing, drying, folding and organizing laundry for customers throughout her community while the rest of her family sleeps.<\/p>\n

The Oakley resident is one of many independent workers using an on-demand laundry service that connects customers with local workers through a mobile app. Customers schedule pickups through the Poplin service (poplin.co\/laundry-service), leave bagged laundry at a designated location and receive wash-and-fold service, typically within 24 hours. Workers are paid by completing orders on their own schedules.<\/p>\n

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Fresquez says the flexible arrangement has become far more than a side job, as it lets her stay home with her family while earning about $2,000 a month to help cover household expenses. Born in Los Angeles County\u2019s city of Lynwood and raised throughout California, Fresquez has lived in Oakley since 2010. She shares a busy home with her husband, father-in-law, two children, daughter-in-law and grandson Leovanni Cabrera-Bucio, age 4.<\/p>\n

Her family\u2019s circumstances changed dramatically after her husband suffered a disabling workplace accident in 2013, leaving him unable to work. Later, the COVID-19 pandemic forced another difficult decision. Fresquez left her job because she feared exposing her father-in-law to illness. Although she eventually needed income again, she says returning to a traditional schedule no longer made sense for her family.<\/p>\n

\u201cCOVID took all of the money we had, and I had to find another job quick,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

At the time, four children ranging in age from 16 to 20 still lived at home. Today, her 19- and 20-year-old children remain there, including a son with autism whom she says benefits from having his parents nearby. Finding affordable childcare was never a realistic option, she said, particularly because of her son\u2019s needs.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo put my son into childcare would never have worked with his condition,\u201d Fresquez said. \u201cAnd would\u2019ve cost so much money we didn\u2019t have.\u201d<\/p>\n

Instead, she found work that fit around her family\u2019s schedule rather than forcing her family to fit around a job. Most afternoons, she picks up or delivers customer orders around 4 or 5 p.m. She begins washing clothes while preparing dinner, then continues working until the early morning hours before repeating her routine the next day. She says the overnight schedule helps minimize distractions.<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

\u201cMy house can get chaotic during the day, so I wait until everyone is sleeping to do my orders,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Although the extra income has not dramatically changed her family\u2019s lifestyle, she said it has eased financial pressure.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt helps with everything,\u201d Fresquez said. \u201cSo many bills or things we needed had to be put off, but now we can comfortably afford more.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Like many people balancing family responsibilities with self-employment, she says time management remains her greatest challenge. Unexpected interruptions can make delivery deadlines stressful, especially while juggling normal household responsibilities alongside customer orders. Through experience, she says she has developed organizational habits the she believes prevent mistakes.<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

She processes only one customer\u2019s laundry at a time to avoid mixing clothing between orders and relies on whiteboards throughout the day to track pickups, deliveries and deadlines. Fresquez says what surprised her most was not the work itself but the demand.<\/p>\n

\u201cI honestly didn\u2019t think I\u2019d get as many orders as I do,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s really a genius idea.\u201d<\/p>\n

The chore of doing laundry has never really bothered her.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have to do it every day anyways,\u201d she said. \u201cWhy not get paid for it?\u201d<\/p>\n

Her children appreciate having their mother home and occasionally help with customer orders, making the business feel like another family activity. Looking ahead, Fresquez says she hopes to keep building her laundry business while pursuing an even larger dream, which is to one day to open her own laundromat.<\/p>\n

Outside work, the family enjoys spending time outdoors, especially camping up north, where they park a trailer for a couple weeks each year. Fresquez also enjoys refurbishing furniture during quieter moments. For parents searching for flexible income opportunities, she encourages them to consider gig work.<\/p>\n

Fresquez says the countless overnight loads have become more than freshly folded clothes. She contends that they represent stability, independence and the ability to remain present for the those who need her most while steadily building toward a dream that began with simply keeping up with the laundry.<\/p>\n

\u201cFlexibility is important when caring for your family,\u201d she said. \u201cYou can tailor your schedule to fit your lifestyle.\u201d<\/p>\n

Reach Diablo Valley College journalism professor and freelance writer Charleen Earley at charleenbearley@gmail.com\u00a0or 925-383-3072.<\/em><\/p>\n

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She says the on-demand laundry service she contracts with lets her stay home with her family and earn needed extra money.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5812,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5813","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-local-news"],"yoast_head":"\nEast Bay woman among those to be counted solidly in favor of gig work - Next City Digest<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=5813\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"East Bay woman among those to be counted solidly in favor of gig work - Next City Digest\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"She says the on-demand laundry service she contracts with lets her stay home with her family and earn needed extra money.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=5813\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Next City Digest\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-07-30T05:37:22+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=5813#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=5813\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/13065d40d633843429ac57d4e5c06f9b\"},\"headline\":\"East Bay woman among those to be counted solidly in favor of gig work\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-30T05:37:22+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=5813\"},\"wordCount\":818,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=5813#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/9cd537c0ad040b4b404c481ac8d6c08e.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"Local News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=5813#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=5813\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=5813\",\"name\":\"East Bay woman among those to be counted solidly in favor of gig work - 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