Students looking for a good deal in Chapel Hill can now look no farther than their fingertips.
A new app for Android and iPhone users brings discounts from Chapel Hill businesses straight to students’ smart phones.
Deals from Franklin Street-favorites like Carolina Coffee Shop, Jack Sprat Cafe, 35 Chinese Restaurant and Top of the Hill Restaurant are featured on the app.
The University Network announced the release of their app, “Deal Finder,” in a press release on Tuesday. 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.
Carolina Coffee Shop owner Scott Cox 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 nation-wide tuition increases led to 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. This will be the first generation of the app, but he said there will be more updates.
The app is free for college students and is available in the App Store and in Google Play.
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