D'Souza and Groetzinger developed the business after they realized the impracticality of investing in quality furniture that would only be used for their senior year.
"Fundamentally, we think the market for furniture and electronics at Dartmouth is inefficient -- at the end of the school year, students are often unable to find anyone willing to buy their used furniture for a decent price," Groetzinger said.
Students can furnish their dorm rooms by selecting items such as futons, lamps, telephones, televisions and refrigerators on the company's website.
Evolving Vox will then deliver all items at the beginning of the term and pick them up at the end of the term when students move out.
Those renting from Vox list the condition of the rentals and the low cost as their primary reasons for renting.
"Their prices were great," Azi Tzfadya '07 said. "[I] haven't seen the actual quality of their items yet but from what the description says, a 20 inch flat-screen TV for 90 bucks a year."
Tzfadya also attributed Vox's popularity to the fact that all of the offered furniture for this term would be new.
After this term, Evolving Vox will only re-rent the returned items it receives that are in mint condition, Groetzinger said.
D'Souza and Groetzinger said they have been overwhelmed by the student response -- over 250 students have placed orders, with futons the most popular item sold. Unprepared for such high demand, Evolving Vox was forced to discontinue a number of items due to concerns that more orders would cause difficulties with coordinating deliveries.
The company is currently considering several changes for the future, including new membership plans, offering a more diverse line of items at lower prices and expanding its clientele at Dartmouth.
Although Evolving Vox hopes to grow, Groetzinger stressed that the company is a tight community of Dartmouth students who share things with each other rather than an "impersonal rental business." Instead of describing itself as a rental company, the site describes Evolving Vox as "Dartmouth's Temporary Ownership Network," which Groetzinger said "emphasizes this sense of community."
"Dartmouth students treat the furniture well because they know that it will be used by future students at the College," Groetzinger said.
After they graduate, D'Souza and Groetzinger plan to pass down leadership of Evolving Vox to younger Dartmouth students.
"We envision a future when the majority of Dartmouth students furnish their dorms with Evolving Vox," D'Souza said.
