Velid Vrabac for Patria: How we developed the Kupuj 387 app that will help the BiH economy

Twenty-one-year-old electrical engineering student at the University of Tuzla, Velid Vrabac, has developed a smartphone application that promotes Bosnian products.

The application 'Kupuj 387' is an interesting 'game' in which customers, after purchasing BiH products in any store in the country, scan the 387 barcode using their smartphone, after which they earn a certain number of points. The ten customers who have the most points at the end of the month, i.e., have bought the most domestic products, win valuable gifts.
The application by the BiH IT expert is unique and original, not only in the country but in the entire region. More than 1,500 customers have installed 'Kupuj 387' on their mobile phones in just 72 hours since the application was launched on Google Play.

Citizens on social networks are welcoming the young IT expert's innovation. Some domestic companies, such as the AS group, have also provided support.

- Our goal is for citizens to have fun, but also to build awareness about the importance of buying domestic products through fun - says Vrabac in an interview for the Patria news agency.

The entire project, he explains, was initiated by the 'Kupuj 387' Association. The association brings together young enthusiasts from the Zenica-Doboj Canton. They were founded a little over three years ago. They help the economy of Bosnia and Herzegovina with the help of social networks and direct conversations with customers. New media are an excellent tool that can influence customer awareness. The association uses them to bring domestic products closer to citizens.

Vrabac says that he developed the Kupuj 387 application for several months. He got ideas from other members of the association, and then turned it all into an interesting and useful project. He says he wants to make the most of new technologies to help his country.

- We can make life in Bosnia and Herzegovina better if we help the domestic economy. Of course, we are not asking for the borders of Bosnia and Herzegovina to be closed to foreign products, on the contrary, there must be an exchange of goods, but through our actions, we are trying to at least equalize the consumption of domestic and imported products in the BiH market. Unfortunately, that is not the case now - says Vrabac.

- It is truly devastating that in the first 11 months of 2016, we imported over 120 million KM of water, and exported only 33 million KM - adds Vrabac.

This young IT expert compares Bosnia and Herzegovina to a hill made of money. 'Every time someone in Bosnia and Herzegovina buys an imported product, that hill shrinks. By buying a domestic product, the hill grows. It is important to maintain a balance between imports and exports. It is even better if exports are greater than imports.'

You can download the Kupuj 387 application by clicking HERE.