The AMS has partnered up with Foro Technologies Inc. to provide a new marketplace service for students in the form of an app.
According to Ron Gorodetsky, AMS Student Services Manager, Foro approached Student Services with a proposal for the app and ended up discussing a partnership.
"The app is produced by a third party company and they approached us later on last year,” said Gorodestsky. “What we ended up doing was discussing a partnership that would form to get the app out to students. We saw a lot of great potential in the app.”
According to their website, Foro “is a new way for university students to buy and sell between one another.” The app allows students to buy and sell their textbooks, electronics, clothing and other used items at a price.
Students interested in buying an item can make an offer to the seller’s price and then potentially set an in-person meeting to complete the purchase.
"If they know that there’s one great place they could do it that has a lot of exposure and is safe for both the buyer and the seller in terms of [knowing] exactly who you’re dealing with ... you have that accountability in place," said Gorodetsky.
Aside from safety measures, additional features of the app include being able to connect to your Facebook profile and take photos of items directly from your phone. You can also be alerted when an item comes into stock that you had been waiting on.
Foro is still a relatively new app on campus as of now, but its listings have been growing as more students find out about it.
“By having another avenue to access textbooks to sell and exchange, students can definitely utilize this avenue and benefit from it via price [and] mobility of textbooks,” said Gorodetsky. Ultimately, this ability to benefit students is why “we’re endorsing it,” said Gorodetsky.