Students looking for a good deal on Franklin St. might not have to look farther than their fingertips.
A new app for Android and iPhone users brings discounts from Chapel Hill businesses straight to student smart phones.
The University Network announced the release of their app, “Deal Finder,” in a press release on Sept. 18. Deal Finder is a mobile app that helps students find nearby deals on the goods and services they regularly spend money on.
Students can find discounts on food, entertainment, nightlife, beauty, fitness, and even doctor visits.
The app’s co-creator, Scott Goryeb, said that his company’s core mission is to help college students save money.
“What you see today isn’t all of the deals. We are always adding more to it,” Goryeb said.
Local business owners who are featured by the app said they were not even aware the app existed.
Scott Cox, owner of the Carolina Coffee Shop, said he didn’t realize his restaurant had deals on the app.
“It’s probably my beer special,” he said.
Cox said the company likely found the information about his specials on his website.
Goryeb said the company decided to focus on college towns after colleges across the nation approved tuition increases causing an increase in student loan debt.
“We wanted to help students save money and this was a good way to do it,” Goryeb said.
The company has been helping students save on their purchases with their website, TUN.com, since 2010 but with the growing number of smart phone users, creating an app was the next step.
Despite its recent arrival, the Android version of the app already has 1,000 downloads.
The iPhone version launched two days ago. Goryeb said it is likely there will be an even split between the two versions. This will be the first generation of the app, but he said there will be more updates.
The app is completely free for college students, and is now available in the App Store and in Google Play.
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