ThriftBox
A student-only marketplace for buying, selling, and renting on campus, designed around one insight: trust matters more than convenience.
Category
Marketplace
Duration
3 Weeks
Tool
Figma
Project overview
A Campus Marketplace Built on Trust
ThriftBox is a verified, student-only marketplace that lets university students safely buy, sell, and rent items within their own campus community. I led end-to-end research and design over six weeks, from the original problem discovery through a tested, validated prototype.
Outcomes
Testing with 15 students validated a trust-first approach to campus commerce:
92%
preferred ThriftBox over the alternatives they were already using
90%
completed the verification flow seamlessly
100%
said they felt safe using the platform
Problem
Why Student Marketplaces Weren't Working
Student marketplaces lacked trust and safety. Facebook Marketplace had no verification, WhatsApp groups were disorganized, and 82% of the students I surveyed worried about scams. Existing platforms treated campus commerce like any other transaction; they missed that students needed community-based trust, not just a place to list things.
The Core Question
How might I create a trusted marketplace that enables students to safely buy, sell, and rent products within their verified university community? Based on my research findings, I prioritized four core features: mandatory student ID verification, integrated chat with persistent product context, dedicated selling and renting flows, and request-based transactions.
My role
Where I Came In
This was a solo, end-to-end project. Over six weeks, I owned user research, persona development, information architecture, UI design, the design system, and usability testing.
Research
How I Got Here
Working within a 7-person team, these were the three pieces I owned end to end from concept through clinical validation.
Where it started
When I arrived in the U.S. as a student on a tight budget, Facebook Marketplace and WhatsApp groups made furnishing my apartment frustrating.
Competitive analysis
I analyzed Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist to see exactly where they fell short for a campus audience.
User interviews
I interviewed 15 students, a mix of buyers, sellers, and both, to validate my assumptions and understand the full scope of the problem.
What the Research Showed
A 10-week effort to understand how chemotherapy patients absorb information, manage fear, and lean on the people around them.
I worked through three tracks in parallel: a literature review, a competitive teardown of existing tools, and structured role-play with my oncology mentor to simulate what patients and caregivers actually go through. What started as a goal to simplify patient education became something bigger: understanding how people process information and depend on others when they're at their lowest.
Pain point analysis
Competitive Analysis
Persona
Information Architecture
User interview
Across interviews, students described the same recurring issues
Fake listings and scams on Facebook Marketplace
Disorganized WhatsApp groups, nearly impossible to search
No rental options for temporary needs
No way to verify sellers were real students
Key findings
INSIGHT 1
Trust is the biggest barrier
82% are worried about scams;
67% have experienced or known someone who'd been scammed
INSIGHT 2
Existing platforms fall short
no verification anywhere, disorganized groups, scammer-friendly
INSIGHT 3
Rentals are untapped
73% wanted short-term rentals, with nothing built for it
Design process
From Research to Product
Verification before convenience
Trust was the biggest barrier my research surfaced, so I made student ID verification mandatory, even knowing the added friction would cost some signups.
Structured requests before instant checkout
Purchases and rentals go through a request-and-approval flow instead of instant "buy now." It gives sellers control and keeps the community feeling safe.
Persistent context before generic chat
Messaging is tied to the product being discussed, so conversations never lose context of what's being bought, sold, or rented.
Dedicated flows before one-size-fits-all
Selling and renting are separate flows, not variations of one form. Renting needs details like pickup windows, deposits, and availability that a sale never does.
Design system
Designing for Trust
I developed a comprehensive design system, including a color palette, typography guidelines, component library, and spacing standards to ensure visual consistency and scalability across the entire application.
High-fidelity design
Screen by Screen
From onboarding and verification to buying, selling, and renting, each one is designed around a clear goal.
Onboarding
A simple welcome, sign-up flow, and login interface that gets students in quickly.
Sign Up
Sign In
Account verification
Real-time student ID capture, front and back, with a submission and approval process.
Home & product details
Product discovery through featured items, new listings, and rentals, with a detailed view for each.
Chat screens
In-app messaging with product context and seller profiles built in.
Purchase product
A request-based system with seller approval and a secure payment flow.
Rent product
A request-based renting system with owner approval and a secure payment flow.
List a product
A quick posting flow for selling or renting, with photo upload and product details.
Seller profile
Seller information, ratings, and active listings, so buyers can make informed decisions.
User profile
A personal profile with stats, purchase history, and account settings.
The Impact
What started as my own frustration with unsafe student marketplaces became a design solution that addresses a real need. ThriftBox isn't just another marketplace; it's a solution that helps students save money, stay safe, and build community. By addressing the core issue of trust through verification, this platform has the potential to transform how millions of students buy, sell, and rent within their campus communities.
