ABOUT PROJECT
Athlens is redefining the path to college recruitment by giving high school athletes the tools they need to stand out in an ultra-competitive landscape. More than just a platform, Athlens connects young athletes with elite creative professionals, videographers, photographers, and editors, who craft high-impact digital profiles that grab the attention of college coaches. In a world where recruitment decisions are made in seconds, a well-executed highlight reel or polished portfolio can make all the difference. Athlens ensures every athlete’s skills, dedication, and potential are captured with the precision and professionalism they deserve.
At the heart of Athlens is a close-knit team of four passionate individuals, each bringing their unique talents and experiences to the platform. Jais Roy, a sophomore at Rutgers Preparatory School and a varsity soccer player, leads the company as CEO with a deep commitment to helping young athletes get the recognition they deserve. Alongside him is Aidan Rico, the Chief Operating Officer, who oversees the company’s day-to-day operations. Sarang Khullar, the Chief Financial Officer, is a sophomore at Hillsborough High School with a passion for finance and economics, which he channels into managing the company’s financial strategy. Rounding out the team is Jimmy Hamlette, the Vice President of Growth & Community. Together, these four are turning their shared vision into a reality, helping young athletes turn their potential into opportunity.
Key Challenges
Building the Athlens platform came with its fair share of challenges, but one of the most complex hurdles was designing a seamless and reliable transaction process. Since the platform connects high school athletes with creative professionals, every transaction needs to account for multiple variables (different service types, pricing structures, and the possibility of disputes or cancellations). Ensuring fair, transparent, and automated handling of these cases required meticulous planning and rigorous testing. From processing payments to handling refunds and dispute resolutions, the team had to develop a system that could handle every edge case without disrupting the user experience.
Testing this system was just as demanding as building it. With so many possible transaction scenarios, even minor miscalculations could lead to significant issues. The team had to simulate countless real-world cases, refining algorithms and workflows to make sure every outcome, whether a successful payment, a partial refund, or a dispute resolution, was handled accurately and efficiently. Despite the complexity, Roobykon’s dedication to precision and user trust ensured that Athlens launched with a transaction process that was both robust and intuitive, giving athletes and creatives the confidence to connect and collaborate without friction.
TECHNOLOGY STACK
core API
Solution Highlights
To bring Athlens to life, the Roobykon team combined powerful technologies with a deep understanding of marketplace dynamics. At its core, the platform is built on Sharetribe, providing a solid foundation for marketplace functionality, including seamless user interactions and service listings. Digital Ocean was chosen for hosting, ensuring fast, scalable, and reliable performance, even as the platform grows.
For secure and efficient payment processing, we leveraged Sharetribe’s built-in Stripe integration, ensuring smooth transactions between athletes and creative professionals. Google Maps enhances the user experience by enabling location-based searches, helping athletes find top-tier creators nearby. To keep the marketplace running smoothly, Activepieces was implemented to automatically notify the platform owner about disputes, ensuring timely intervention and a transparent resolution process. Together, these solutions create a seamless, high-performance platform that empowers young athletes to take control of their futures.
THE PROCESS
01
Requirements gathering & analysis (1 month): The journey of building Athlens began with an in-depth discussion of requirements. The client had a vision but needed clarity on priorities for the MVP. We worked closely with them to analyze their needs, estimate development efforts, and refine the scope. After some back-and-forth adjustments, they identified the most critical features, allowing us to move forward with a well-defined plan.
02
Building the core: Development (4 Months): With the requirements locked in, we moved into full-scale development. There was no dedicated custom design, so we adapted the existing website’s style and retained most of Sharetribe’s default UI elements. This streamlined approach allowed us to focus on functionality, guaranteeing smooth transactions, reliable search, and seamless user interactions.
03
Solving complexities: One of the most challenging aspects was implementing a robust transaction system with Stripe, capable of handling disputes and cancellations fairly. We meticulously developed and tested each scenario, ensuring calculations were accurate and processes ran smoothly. Integrating ActivePieces for automated dispute notifications helped create a responsive and transparent resolution system.
04
Final touches & launch: With core functionalities in place, we fine-tuned the platform, fixed edge-case issues, and optimized performance. After thorough testing, Athlens was ready to launch, delivering a powerful tool for high school athletes to showcase their talents and connect with top creative professionals.
Main Features
Flexible transaction process with disputes and cancellations
Given the unique nature of their business, Athlens required a highly flexible transaction system to accommodate various outcomes. Roobykon developed 14 different transaction scenarios to ensure that both athletes and creators are satisfied. In each case, payments and refunds are carefully managed to reflect the specifics of the situation, ensuring a fair and transparent process for both parties, whether the transaction is successful or involves disputes or cancellations.
Multiple services in one listing
Creators now have the ability to create multiple listings, each offering a selection of services with their own individual prices. This allows athletes to book either a single service or a combination, with the total cost dynamically adjusting based on their selection. This added flexibility improves the booking experience, offering more tailored options to athletes while also helping creators maximize the visibility and appeal of their services.
Admin listing for featured creators
To further enhance the platform’s offerings, we introduced Admin Listing, which is a specially curated listing created by the marketplace admins. This listing appears as an advertising banner on the search page, guiding athletes toward creators who offer premium services or those that may best match their needs. This feature also provides marketplace owners with the ability to suggest creators to athletes if no suitable options are available from the regular search results.
File upload & image cropping
Understanding that many athletes seek photographers and videographers, Roobykon ensured the platform supports seamless file uploads. To maintain high-quality image previews, we implemented an image cropping tool. This allows users to select the most relevant portion of an image, ensuring that only the best part is showcased in the preview.
Location search with radius filter
To help athletes find creators in their vicinity, we added a location-based filter with a customizable radius. This feature makes it easy for athletes to search for creators nearby, saving time and improving the chances of finding the perfect fit based on both expertise and location.
Gamification system
To keep users engaged, Roobykon introduced a gamification system where athletes and creators can earn badges based on their activity. The more active they are on the platform, the more badges they earn. These badges not only serve as a fun incentive but also help users stand out, giving them recognition for their involvement and creating a competitive yet enjoyable atmosphere.
Favorites
Athletes can now save their favorite creators in a personalized Favorites list. This provides quick access to preferred profiles for easy booking and repeat visits, streamlining the process of finding the right fit every time.
Google Pay & Apple Pay system
To make transactions even more convenient, we added Google Pay and Apple Pay as alternative payment options. These integrations give users flexibility in choosing their preferred payment method, speeding up checkout and improving the overall booking experience.
Calendar integration
Creators can now integrate their marketplace bookings directly into their calendars, making it easier for them to manage their schedules and stay on top of their appointments. This integration ensures they never miss a booking and helps both athletes and creators stay organized.
Filtered inbox
To simplify communication, Roobykon added a filtered inbox, allowing users to search and sort their orders by status. This feature helps both athletes and creators keep track of their transactions more efficiently, making it easier to find active or completed orders, and reducing clutter in their inboxes.
Custom profile URL
Creators now have the ability to create custom profile URLs, allowing them to share clean, memorable links that showcase their work. This makes it easier for athletes to find and remember their favorite creators while helping creators build a stronger personal brand.
Sharing file storage link
To simplify content delivery, we added the option to share a file storage link. This allows creators to send high-quality content directly to athletes in a secure and organized way, complementing the built-in file upload functionality and making collaboration smoother.
RESULTS
The cooperation between Athlens and Roobykon proved to be a dynamic and rewarding journey, marked by thoughtful decision-making and adaptability. Initially, Athlens came to us with a long list of desired features, but due to budget constraints, they decided to scale back the scope for the first phase of development. However, as we progressed and the platform started taking shape, it became clear that many of the originally requested features were essential for the platform’s success. Athlens ultimately decided to reintegrate those features, along with a few additional ones that they identified as critical for the MVP. This decision, while increasing the overall cost, ensured that the platform would meet their vision and provide real value to its users.
By the time the platform launched in April 2025, it had evolved into a fully-featured, high-quality product that met both the core and expanded needs of the Athlens team. The end result was a platform that offered the flexibility, functionality, and user experience that were essential for connecting athletes and creators in a meaningful way.
Lessons from Athlens
During the development of the Athlens marketplace, the Roobykon team encountered a range of challenges that pushed us to think creatively, adapt quickly, and refine our processes. One of the biggest lessons we learned was the importance of flexibility. Athlens started with an ambitious set of features, and while budget constraints led us to scale back initially, it became clear as the project progressed that many of those features were essential for the platform’s success. This taught us to be adaptable and understand when it’s crucial to stay true to a client’s vision, even if it means revisiting earlier decisions and adjusting scope, budget, and timelines accordingly.
Another significant challenge was designing a complex transaction process with disputes and cancellations. This required us to be meticulous and ensure that every possible scenario was covered. Testing these cases with precise calculations and handling the user experience in each case taught us the value of attention to detail and thorough testing. We learned how to anticipate edge cases and develop solutions that are not just functional but also intuitive for the user.
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