Overview
Mustang Market
Marketplace platform for Cal Poly students that grew to 900+ users in three months. Gated access with Cal Poly SSO via Microsoft Azure AD so only verified calpoly.edu accounts can buy and sell, and used Groq APIs to auto-flag unwanted images and descriptions at listing creation. Shipped to both web and the iOS App Store.
01
The Problem
Cal Poly students relied on fragmented channels — GroupMe chats, Instagram stories, dorm bulletin boards — to buy and sell items. There was no centralized, trusted platform designed specifically for campus commerce.
02
The Approach
I built a dedicated marketplace web app gated behind Cal Poly SSO via Microsoft Azure AD, so only verified calpoly.edu accounts could join. I added real-time messaging for buyer-seller communication, a clean listing system with image uploads, and Groq-powered moderation that flags unwanted images and descriptions at listing creation. Then wrapped it as a native iOS app for mobile access.
03
Technical Highlights
- Cal Poly SSO via Microsoft Azure AD, restricting access to verified calpoly.edu accounts for a trusted campus-only marketplace
- Groq APIs to flag and block unwanted images and descriptions during listing creation
- Firestore real-time listeners for instant messaging and live listing updates
- Image upload pipeline with compression and Firebase Storage
- Next.js SSR for SEO and fast initial page loads, plus iOS App Store deployment with push notifications
04
Results
900+ registered users in three months with organic campus adoption
Active daily listings across multiple categories
Published on the iOS App Store
Word-of-mouth growth without paid marketing