This Privacy Policy describes how merinohouse.com (the “Site” or “we”) collects, uses, and discloses your Personal Information when you visit or make a purchase from the Site.

COLLECTING PERSONAL INFORMATION

When you visit the Site, we collect certain information about your device, your interaction with the Site, and information necessary to process your purchases. We may also collect additional information if you contact us for customer support. In this Privacy Policy, we refer to any information that can uniquely identify an individual (including the information below) as “Personal Information”. See the list below for more information about what Personal Information we collect and why.

Device information


Examples of Personal Information collected: version of web browser, IP address, time zone, cookie information, what sites or products you view, search terms, and how you interact with the Site.
Purpose of collection: to load the Site accurately for you, and to perform analytics on Site usage to optimize our Site.
Source of collection: Collected automatically when you access our Site using cookies, log files, web beacons, tags, or pixels

  • Cookies – Small files stored on your device to track your activity on our Site and improve your user experience.
  • Log Files – Files that record your interactions with our Site, including your IP address, browser type, and access times.
  • Web Beacons – Small transparent images used to track the behavior of users visiting our Site, often for analytics purposes.
  • Tags – Pieces of code used on our Site to track and collect data about user behavior.
  • Pixels – Small tracking codes or images that help us gather data about user engagement, often used in advertising and marketing.


Disclosure for a business purpose: shared with our processor Shopify

  • Shopify – We share your personal information with our processor Shopify to process orders, handle payments, and manage our online store.


Order information

Examples of Personal Information collected: name, billing address, shipping address, payment information (including credit card numbers ), email address, and phone number.


Purpose of collection: to provide products or services to you to fulfill our contract, to process your payment information, arrange for shipping, and provide you with invoices and/or order confirmations, communicate with you, screen our orders for potential risk or fraud, and when in line with the preferences you have shared with us, provide you with information or advertising relating to our products or services.


Source of collection: collected from you.

Disclosure for a business purpose: shared with our processor Shopify、Facebook、Google

  • Shopify – We share your personal information with our processor Shopify to process orders, handle payments, and manage our online store.
  • Google – For advertising, analytics, and tracking user interactions on our site to improve marketing and targeting efforts.
  • Facebook – For advertising, including targeted marketing and tracking user activity through Facebook and Instagram ads.


Customer support information

Examples of Personal Information collected:

  • Identifiers – Such as your name, email address, phone number, postal address, and IP address.
  • Commercial Information – Information about your purchases, transaction history, and preferences.
  • Internet or Other Electronic Network Activity – Data such as browsing history, search history, and interactions with our website, including the pages you visit and the links you click.
  • Geolocation Data – Your physical location (e.g., based on IP address or GPS information).
  • Professional or Employment Information – If applicable, your job title, employer, or business-related information.
  • Inferences Drawn from Other Personal Information – Preferences, behaviors, and trends inferred from your activity on our Site.
  • Payment Information – Payment details, including credit card information or PayPal account details (Note: Payment details may be collected by third-party payment processors like Shopify or PayPal, and are subject to their privacy policies).
  • Sensitive Information – In some cases, we may collect sensitive information, such as health-related data, if you voluntarily provide it (e.g., for health or wellness-related products).
  • Social Media Information – Data related to your social media profiles (if linked or integrated with our Site), such as your social media handle, posts, and interactions.


Purpose of collection: to provide customer support.


Source of collection: collected from you.

Disclosure for a business purpose:


Minors

The Site is not intended for individuals under the age of 16. We do not intentionally collect Personal Information from children. If you are the parent or guardian and believe your child has provided us with Personal Information, please contact us at the address below to request deletion.

SHARING PERSONAL INFORMATION

We share your Personal Information with service providers to help us provide our services and fulfill our contracts with you, as described above. For example:

  • We use Shopify to power our online store. You can read more about how Shopify uses your Personal Information here: https://www.shopify.com/legal/privacy.
  • We may share your Personal Information to comply with applicable laws and regulations, to respond to a subpoena, search warrant or other lawful request for information we receive, or to otherwise protect our rights.

Behavioural Advertising

As described above, we use your Personal Information to provide you with targeted advertisements or marketing communications we believe may be of interest to you. For example:

  • We use Google Analytics to help us understand how our customers use the Site. You can read more about how Google uses your Personal Information here: https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en.You can also opt-out of Google Analytics here: https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout.
  •  We share information about your use of the Site, your purchases, and your interaction with our ads on other websites with our advertising partners. We collect and share some of this information directly with our advertising partners, and in some cases through the use of cookies or other similar technologies (which you may consent to, depending on your location).

For more information about how targeted advertising works, you can visit the Network Advertising Initiative’s (“NAI”) educational page at http://www.networkadvertising.org/understanding-online-advertising/how-does-it-work.

You can opt out of targeted advertising by:

Additionally, you can opt out of some of these services by visiting the Digital Advertising Alliance’s opt-out portal at: http://optout.aboutads.info/.

How we protect your information

We adopt appropriate data collection, storage and processing practices and security measures to protect against unauthorized access, alteration, disclosure or destruction of your personal information, username, password, transaction information and data stored on our Site.

Sensitive and private data exchange between the Site and its Users happens over a SSL secured communication channel and is encrypted and protected with digital signatures.

Security with Credit Cards and payments

Aussie Wool Comfort does not retain any credit card details entered into PayPal integration software during the checkout process via a 128bit SSL connection.

For further security information on PayPal you can visit their website - https://www.paypal.com/au/webapps/mpp/ua/privacy-full

USING PERSONAL INFORMATION

We use your personal Information to provide our services to you, which includes: offering products for sale, processing payments, shipping and fulfillment of your order, and keeping you up to date on new products, services, and offers.


Lawful basis

Pursuant to the General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”), if you are a resident of the European Economic Area (“EEA”), we process your personal information under the following lawful bases:

  • Your consent;
  • The performance of the contract between you and the Site;
  • Compliance with our legal obligations;
  • To protect your vital interests;
  • To perform a task carried out in the public interest;
  • For our legitimate interests, which do not override your fundamental rights and freedoms.

Retention

When you place an order through the Site, we will retain your Personal Information for our records unless and until you ask us to erase this information. For more information on your right of erasure, please see the ‘Your rights’ section below.


Automatic decision-making

If you are a resident of the EEA, you have the right to object to processing based solely on automated decision-making (which includes profiling), when that decision-making has a legal effect on you or otherwise significantly affects you.

We DO NOT engage in fully automated decision-making that has a legal or otherwise significant effect using customer data.

Our processor Shopify uses limited automated decision-making to prevent fraud that does not have a legal or otherwise significant effect on you.

SELLING PERSONAL INFORMATION

Our Site sells Personal Information, as defined by the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (“CCPA”).


Categories of Information Sold
We may sell the following categories of personal information:

  • Identifiers – Name, email address, IP address, postal address, etc.
  • Commercial Information – Purchase history, transaction data, and product preferences.
  • Internet or Other Electronic Network Activity – Browsing history, search queries, and interactions with our website.
  • Geolocation Data – Information about your physical location (e.g., from your IP address or mobile device).
  • Inferences Drawn from Other Personal Information – Data about your preferences, behaviors, and purchasing patterns.


Instructions on How to Opt-Out of Sale
You have the right to opt-out of the sale of your personal information. To exercise this right, please follow the instructions below:

Once we receive your request, we will process it in accordance with CCPA requirements and ensure that your personal information is no longer sold.

Do We Sell the Personal Information of Minors (Under 16)?
We do not knowingly sell the personal information of minors under the age of 16. If you are a parent or guardian and believe that we may have collected personal information from a minor under the age of 16, please contact us immediately at support@merinohouse.com so that we can take appropriate action.

If we were to start selling information from minors in the future, we will seek affirmative authorization from the minor (or their guardian) before doing so, in compliance with the CCPA.

Key Notes:

  • Categories of Information Sold: Be specific about the types of personal information you sell.
  • Opt-Out Instructions: Provide a clear method for customers to opt out of the sale of their information.
  • Minor Information: Make sure to mention how you handle personal data from minors, if applicable.
  • Financial Incentive: If you provide incentives for opting out of information sales, detail the incentive and how it works.

YOUR RIGHTS

GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation)

If you are a resident of the European Economic Area (EEA), you have the following rights regarding the personal information we hold about you:

  1. Right to Access: You have the right to request access to the personal information we hold about you.
  2. Right to Portability: You have the right to request that your personal information be transferred to a new service provider.
  3. Right to Rectification: You have the right to request that any incorrect or incomplete personal information be corrected or updated.
  4. Right to Erasure: You have the right to request that your personal information be erased, under certain circumstances.

If you would like to exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the contact information provided below. We will respond to your request in accordance with applicable data protection laws.

Contact Information for Exercising Your Rights:

  • Email: support@merinohouse.com

Your personal information will be initially processed in Ireland and then transferred outside of Europe for storage and further processing, including to Canada and the United States. For more information on how data transfers comply with the GDPR, please refer to Shopify's GDPR Whitepaper.

Note: To exercise your rights, you may need to provide sufficient information to verify your identity. We may also request additional information to process your request securely.


CCPA (California Consumer Privacy Act)

If you are a resident of California, you have the following rights regarding your personal information:

  1. Right to Know: You have the right to request access to the personal information we hold about you.
  2. Right to Portability: You have the right to request that your personal information be transferred to a new service provider.
  3. Right toRectification: You have the right to request that any incorrect or incomplete personal information be corrected or updated.
  4. Right to Erasure: You have the right to request that your personal information be erased.

If you would like to exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the contact information provided below. You may also designate an authorized agent to submit these requests on your behalf. If you wish to designate an authorized agent, please contact us at the address below for further instructions.

Contact Information for Exercising Your CCPA Rights:

  • Email: support@merinohouse.com
  • Or you may submit your request via our contact form on the website.

How to Submit Your Request

Please make sure that when submitting a request under either GDPR or CCPA, you provide enough information for us to verify your identity and to ensure that we are fulfilling your request properly. You can submit a request by emailing us, calling our customer service number, or submitting a form on our website.

Key Notes:

  • Ensure your email address, phone number, and physical address are provided for users to contact you regarding their GDPR and CCPA rights.
  • If your company uses a third-party service provider like Shopify for data processing or storage, you can link to their GDPR Whitepaper to provide further transparency.
  • The section for CCPA includes an additional note about authorizing an agent, which is a specific requirement for California residents.

COOKIES

A cookie is a small amount of information that’s downloaded to your computer or device when you visit our Site. We use a number of different cookies, including functional, performance, advertising, and social media or content cookies. Cookies make your browsing experience better by allowing the website to remember your actions and preferences (such as login and region selection). This means you don’t have to re-enter this information each time you return to the site or browse from one page to another. Cookies also provide information on how people use the website, for instance whether it’s their first time visiting or if they are a frequent visitor.

We use the following cookies to optimize your experience on our Site and to provide our services.


Cookies Necessary for the Functioning of the Store


Name Function
_ab Used in connection with access to admin.
_secure_session_id Used in connection with navigation through a storefront.
cart Used in connection with shopping cart.
cart_sig Used in connection with checkout.
cart_ts Used in connection with checkout.
checkout_token Used in connection with checkout.
secret Used in connection with checkout.
secure_customer_sig Used in connection with customer login.
storefront_digest Used in connection with customer login.
_shopify_u Used to facilitate updating customer account information.

Reporting and Analytics


Name Function
_tracking_consent Tracking preferences.
_landing_page Track landing pages
_orig_referrer Track landing pages
_s Shopify analytics.
_shopify_s Shopify analytics.
_shopify_sa_p Shopify analytics relating to marketing & referrals.
_shopify_sa_t Shopify analytics relating to marketing & referrals.
_shopify_y Shopify analytics.
_y Shopify analytics.


The length of time that a cookie remains on your computer or mobile device depends on whether it is a “persistent” or “session” cookie. Session cookies last until you stop browsing and persistent cookies last until they expire or are deleted. Most of the cookies we use are persistent and will expire between 30 minutes and two years from the date they are downloaded to your device.

You can control and manage cookies in various ways. Please keep in mind that removing or blocking cookies can negatively impact your user experience and parts of our website may no longer be fully accessible.

Most browsers automatically accept cookies, but you can choose whether or not to accept cookies through your browser controls, often found in your browser’s “Tools” or “Preferences” menu. For more information on how to modify your browser settings or how to block, manage or filter cookies can be found in your browser’s help file.

Additionally, please note that blocking cookies may not completely prevent how we share information with third parties such as our advertising partners. To exercise your rights or opt-out of certain uses of your information by these parties, please follow the instructions in the “Behavioural Advertising” section above.


Do Not Track


Please note that because there is no consistent industry understanding of how to respond to “Do Not Track” signals, we do not alter our data collection and usage practices when we detect such a signal from your browser.

CHANGES

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time in order to reflect, for example, changes to our practices or for other operational, legal, or regulatory reasons.

CONTACT

For more information about our privacy practices, if you have questions, or if you would like to make a complaint, please contact us by e-mail at support@merinohouse.com.