November 19, 2020 by Charlie Eisenhood in News with 0 comments
You might not be able to swap jerseys at tournaments right now, but a new website makes it easy to do while supporting the charity of your choice.
Frizbay is an online marketplace for old, used, or unwanted ultimate gear where all profits go to charitable organizations selected by sellers. It’s the brainchild of Richard “Pringle” Taylor, a UK-based software developer who wanted to practice his craft while “getting rid of loads of my kit” that he’s collected over his time playing ultimate.
Sellers are able to select the price for which they want to sell their jerseys, shorts, or other gear. Frizbay collects payment from a buyer, along with a shipping payment that’s sent to sellers, and then directs the proceeds to the charity the seller selected. The site is still in its early stages, but over 100 items have been added so far, over 60 have sold, and nearly $1000 has been donated to charity.
“It’s really surprised me how much people have gotten behind it so far,” said Taylor. “£700 raised for charity raised so far, which I think for used, old frisbee kit that nobody wanted I think is pretty good going.”
Taylor says that there is clearly demand for used ultimate gear with his mostly UK-based audience so far, especially from top teams, like the Great Britain National Team, or from far-away places. “Not everyone gets to go to foreign tournaments, World Championships, the kind of events where you could trade jerseys with someone from somewhere else in the world,” he said. “That’s the vast majority of players. But wouldn’t it be cool if they could still get their hands on a rare Japanese jersey?”
The highest ticket item so far has been an unopened “rare third jersey” from the GB National Team, which Pringle sold for £30 (~$40).
The next step, he says, is to build a wider audience and potentially consider retailing new gear or creating a for-profit option for sellers with a cut going to Frizbay, like a traditional consignment website, if it grows big enough. “I’m happy as it is to just be the gateway,” he said. “That’s kind of the reason why I’m pushing the idea to see if there is eventually a way to make money from it.”
But, first, the goal is just to get more gear listed from outside the UK. “Anything that an American puts on there to the rest of the world is going to be hot property,” he said. “That’s the next stage to really kick it off.”
