UnidBooks

Name

UnidBooks

Profile information

UnidBooks

Talking about

Business Plan Competition and Enterprise Scholarships

Content

Second prize trading winner

About UnidBooks

UnidBooks is an online marketplace for students to buy and sell second-hand university textbooks. Cesca Douglas launched UnidBooks as a final year medical student to reduce textbook waste and to ensure textbooks are affordable for all.

Sustainability is at the heart of UnidBooks. This marketplace strives to keep pre-loved books within the community for future students and encourages a sustainable mindset amongst students.The ‘buy online and meet in-person’ concept enables same day delivery at no extra cost to the planet.

Cesca, the Director and Founder of Unid Books, said:

“For the last six years at university, I have seen first-hand the amount of textbook waste within the student community. Students pay extortionate prices for textbooks, use them for one semester and the textbook collects dust for the rest of their degree.

UnidBooks disrupts this unsustainable cycle, allowing textbooks to be bought for an affordable price and ensuring students can re-sell their textbooks when they graduate.

Leeds students have made over £5000 from selling second-hand textbooks on UnidBooks. Sales have diverted over one tonne of paper waste going to landfill and redistributed valuable textbooks within the student community”.

I believe that textbooks should not cost the earth. I am proud to have created a platform that ensures textbooks are affordable for all, whilst promoting sustainable change”.

Support from Spark

The Spark Enterprise Scholarship has allowed UnidBooks to establish a strong presence on the Leeds campus by facilitating website improvements and a clear marketing strategy.

UnidBooks received the runner up award for the 2022 Business Plan Competition which will allow UnidBooks to expand to additional universities.

Cesca said:

“I am incredibly grateful to the Spark team for their invaluable support and guidance. Spark has allowed me to meet and learn from incredible entrepreneurs. It is an inspiring network which I am proud to be a part of”.