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“In the game of business, if Eric Berdinis is going to hit you, you’re going to feel like LeBron James just hit you at full speed.”

Such was one of the praises Shmuel Gordon, chief executive officer and co-founder of GankIt.com, had to offer regarding the Engineering sophomore, who worked for Gordon over the summer.

Berdinis, a Zeta Beta Tau brother, went from working as an average web design intern at ZooZ Media to becoming the fourth-largest shareholder of GankIt, a virtual marketplace launched earlier this year.

On the site, users bid on items in one-cent increments, and the user with the highest bid by the end of the timed auction wins the item. Meanwhile, users can “gank” the item — similar to eBay’s “Buy It Now” option. However, unlike on eBay, the gank price drops as more bids are placed, and a ganking does not end an auction. "Think of it as an unlimited shelf of items that can get ganked during the auction with one item set aside for the auction winner," Berdinis explained in an e-mail.

When Berdinis returned to Penn for the fall semester, he shared GankIt with his brothers at ZBT, who became very supportive of the site.

President of ZBT and College junior Bennett Mayrock was enthusiastic about the success of the ZBT sophomore and claimed that the site “captivated our entire frat.”

Berdinis’ success is compelling, Mayrock wrote in an e-mail, because “it shows how the Fraternity network can quickly propel one’s career, even while at Penn.”

Berdinis said so far, 22 ZBT brothers have made purchases on the site. “They really, really jumped on it,” he said, adding that the sense of community at ZBT has helped him work toward his professional aspirations.

Berdinis was introduced to GankIt’s founders during his web design internship with ZooZ Media in Houston this summer. Once there, he soon earned the respect and trust of the management team.

“They realized that I’m not just an intern,” Berdinis said.

Gordon stressed that Berdinis, from the beginning, “worked as an owner” rather than an intern. “His creativity was stellar,” he said.

“I expect that every organization that has ever been involved with Eric’s growth, including the University of Pennsylvania, which he is so proud of, to jump on Eric’s bandwagon — I know I have. So have my business partners,” Gordon said, adding, “We rely on Eric Berdinis.”

Editor's Note: This article was updated from its print version to clarify the "ganking" process on GankIt.com.

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