A 73-year-old grandmother, Inez Hudson, is seeing her homemade pies and cakes sell out quickly after a TikTok video of her went viral.
Inez sets up outside Super Choice Foods in Lakeland, Florida, three days a week to sell her baked goods, which include pineapple pound cake, red velvet cake with cream cheese and pecans, and sweet potato pie.
“I handle everything myself,” Inez told FOX 13. “I’ve been baking since I was very young, and it’s something I’ve always enjoyed. Over the years, I just kept baking and selling. I originally started this for the church.”
Since November 2018, Inez has been selling homemade pies and cakes outside the grocery store. She frequently begins her baking at midnight.
Business can be unpredictable for Inez, with some days being slow and others where she sells out completely. However, after a video about her went viral, she experienced a hectic day, with customers traveling from various places to buy her treats.
A local Lakeland resident named Mannie shared a touching video on TikTok showcasing Inez’s homemade pies and cakes.
The video has garnered over 800,000 views. Mannie mentioned that the post was meant to support Inez’s small business, not for personal benefit.
“That’s the main reason I posted it—not to go viral, but to encourage local support for each other, which is the most fulfilling experience,” Mannie explained.
Inez, who is retired and sells cakes to supplement her income, has made her friends proud of her success.
Her long-time friend, Jamie Overstreet, mentioned that she advised Inez to put her faith in God. With the increase in customers and her story going viral, it’s been an exciting time.
Inez shared that the owner of Super Choice Foods doesn’t charge her for selling her homemade pies and cakes outside the store.
Jimeld Zad, the store owner, said he believes in giving people opportunities, and Inez deserves that chance.
Hudson admitted that the sudden attention makes her a bit nervous, but overall, she’s mostly happy.
She’s always dreamed of doing something like this, and though she hopes to open her shop one day, for now, she’s satisfied with her modest setup. It brings her joy.
“It makes me feel good because I’ve been doing this for so many years, and it’s something I’ve always wanted to pursue,” she said.
Why do older people continue working?
Americans are working longer than ever before. According to VOX, the average retirement age increased from 59 in the early 2000s to 62 last year.
Older workers are now clocking in almost 30% more hours than they did in 1987. Experts suggest that people continue working for various reasons: some out of necessity, others because they want to, or a combination of both.
Economist Kathryn Edwards explains that this trend shows both a wish to remain active and the difficult reality of inadequate savings.
Senior economist Monique Morrissey highlights that financial insecurity is a major factor driving older people to work longer.
In 2022, almost 43 percent of individuals aged 55 to 64 had no retirement savings.
Recent stories emphasize older Americans working tough jobs out of necessity, like an 82-year-old Walmart cashier who received over $100,000 from a GoFundMe and an 89-year-old pizza delivery man who was gifted $20,000 through a fundraising campaign.
“There are two distinct experiences for older workers,” says Morrissey. “Half are thriving, while the other half are facing difficulties.”
Additionally, older Black and Latino workers are more likely to be in physically demanding jobs compared to their white peers, according to the Schwartz Center for Economic Policy Analysis.
More than 40% of Black and Latino workers aged 55 to 64 are in physically tough jobs, whereas only 25% of white workers in the same age group face similar demands. This disparity is even more stark among those without a college degree.
In 2018, over 40% of workers aged 55 to 64 were in physically demanding jobs, and nearly one-third of those over 65 without a degree were still working in these roles.
These older workers often earn lower wages, have limited retirement savings, and may not qualify for full Social Security benefits if they retire early.
Edwards notes that these financial difficulties make it challenging to save for retirement and also make it harder to keep working as they age.
Morrissey adds that many older workers take on these physically demanding jobs out of necessity.
While age discrimination is an issue, tough, low-paying jobs like janitorial or caregiving work are less likely to turn away older candidates, making these positions a more feasible option for some.
Check out the story of the 73-year-old grandmother who sells homemade pies and cakes below:
