Nguyễn Hữu Thuận and his app. — Photo thanhnien.vn

HCM CITY — Nguyễn Hữu Thuận, the manager of a technology company in HCM City, recently set up a second-hand item sharing app, which has become a platform for people who want to give away or receive things for free.

Thuận said the app (Goshare) opens space for everyone who wants to share their old, used or unnecessary items such as clothes and furniture with the needy. People who want to save money on new items or recycle things can also connect with each other on the app to pick up old things.

All users have to do is take photos of the items they want to give away, say something about them, and attach an address.

“It takes 30 seconds for the whole process,” the 28-year-old manager said.

People looking for old things can search for key words and localise their area to find suitable items.

Goshare was designed in one month amid the COVID-19 pandemic in Việt Nam.

“When the company was hit by the pandemic, I thought of an idea so that staff could team up to make a product for the community in this challenging time,” Thuận said.

The app is totally free. The maintenance fee is also zero because he is using his server and staff.

Phan Lê Thương, 25, living in Gò Vấp District, HCM City found out about Goshare when her wardrobe was almost full of both new and old items.

“I've worn some of my clothes just once or twice and then thrown them in the wardrobe. I've posted the items for sale or to give away on my Facebook page and groups but no one was interested because I do not have a lot of friends on Facebook. Sometimes I find it annoying to post too much on groups.

“The Goshare app really matches my demand and helps me save time,” she told Thanh Niên (Young People) newspaper.

The app is designed with simple instructions for young and old users to share items, the app founder said.

Lê Thị Hoài, 56, in Bình Thạnh District, was one of the first elderly people to start using the app after his son showed it to him.

“The app is in Vietnamese so I do not have any difficulties using it.”

The Goshare founder said the app targets everyone who wants to give away or find old items, especially needy people.

Goshare is now available on Android and will soon debut on iOS.

“In the future, users will be guided to locations of voluntary activities or organisations near them so that they can directly donate items to these addresses,” Thuận said.

“In the future, I want to upgrade the app to a voluntary social networking platform so that everyone can do voluntary work and share items with the community anywhere, anytime.” — VNS