New website offers safer way for college students to shop and sell online

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — A new local start-up may be changing the way college students buy and sell things in the Port City. Flippze caters to students at UNCW and Cape Fear Community College looking to sell anything from textbooks to surfboards.

To create an account on the site you must provide your name, gender, and school issued email address. CEO and co-founder Geoffrey Fox said that safety is a priority for Flippze and the sign-up criteria is another layer of security to keep users safe during transactions.

“Flippze takes away the unknown,” said Fox.

Fox, an Army veteran, said his family helped inspire the project.

“I’ve got two younger sisters, and being a veteran myself, safety is a very important factor in any situation,” Fox said.

Not only is the site piggy-backing off of the security measures already put in place by colleges and universities, but the site is also working with local businesses to facilitate safe places to meet up.

“If a student wanted to sell something, say for example a book, at a coffee shop,” Fox said. “They have the option on our website to click that they would like to meet at a local small coffee shop. We are now in turn providing that coffee shop with business that would not have otherwise existed has they not been given that opportunity.”

The website is currently available to students at both schools, and because it is still in beta testing, there are opportunities for users to give feedback on ways to make the website better.

Fox said they hope to expand by the summer and fall to include other colleges and universities around the state.