MerchSquad Apparel (“MerchSquad Apparel”, “we”, “us” or “our”) respects your privacy and is committed to protecting your personal information.
This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, disclose and protect personal information when you visit merchsquad.co.za, create an account, contact us, request a quote, place an order or otherwise use our products and services (collectively, the “Services”).
We process personal information in accordance with the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 (“POPIA”), the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act 25 of 2002 and other applicable South African laws.
For purposes of POPIA, MerchSquad Apparel is the responsible party for the personal information described in this policy.
2. Personal information we collect
The personal information we collect depends on how you interact with us and may include:
Information you provide directly
your name and surname;
email address and telephone number;
billing, delivery and collection addresses;
account username and login information;
order details, sizes, quantities and product preferences;
company, school, club or team information;
quotations, enquiries and customer-service correspondence;
proof of payment and limited transaction information;
names, initials, photographs, logos, artwork or other information supplied for personalised or branded garments;
reviews, feedback and content you choose to submit; and
marketing preferences and consent records.
Payment information
Payments may be processed through third-party payment providers. We may receive limited payment information, such as the payment status, transaction reference and the type of payment method used. We do not ordinarily receive or store your complete payment-card number, security code or online-banking login details.
Information collected automatically
When you use our website, we and our service providers may automatically collect:
your IP address;
browser, device and operating-system information;
pages viewed, links clicked and time spent on the website;
referring website or campaign information;
approximate location derived from your IP address;
shopping-cart and checkout activity; and
cookie and similar technology identifiers.
This information helps us operate, secure and improve the website and understand how visitors use it.
3. How we collect personal information
We may collect personal information:
directly from you when you use our website, place an order, request a quote, contact us or submit customisation material;
from a person or organisation placing an order on your behalf, such as an employer, school, club, team or family member;
automatically through cookies, server logs and similar technology;
from payment, ecommerce, delivery and other service providers involved in completing your transaction; and
from public sources or social-media platforms when you interact with our public pages, subject to the platform’s privacy settings.
If you provide us with another person’s personal information, you must be authorised to do so and must ensure that the person is informed about the relevant processing.
4. Why we use personal information
We may process personal information to:
create and manage customer accounts;
respond to enquiries and prepare quotations;
process payments and fulfil, personalise and deliver orders;
communicate about production, delivery, collection, returns and customer support;
create printed, embroidered or otherwise customised clothing and swimwear;
verify transactions, prevent fraud and protect our website and customers;
maintain business, tax, accounting and transaction records;
comply with legal and regulatory obligations;
improve our products, Services, website and customer experience;
measure website performance and advertising effectiveness;
send marketing communications where permitted by law; and
establish, exercise or defend legal claims.
We process personal information only where there is a lawful justification, including where processing is necessary to perform a contract with you, comply with a legal obligation, pursue a legitimate business interest, protect a legitimate interest, or where you have given valid consent.
Where information is required to process or deliver an order, failure to provide it may mean that we cannot provide the requested product or Service.
5. Custom artwork and personalised garment information
When you order branded or personalised garments, you may provide names, numbers, images, logos, measurements or other customisation information.
We use this information to prepare quotations or proofs and to manufacture and fulfil the order. We may share only the information reasonably necessary with our employees, contractors, printers, embroiderers or production partners involved in completing the order.
You are responsible for ensuring that you have authority to provide personal information, photographs, logos and artwork relating to other people. Customisation files will be retained only for as long as reasonably necessary for production, reorders, record-keeping, dispute resolution or another lawful purpose.
6. Cookies and similar technologies
Our website may use cookies and similar technologies to:
keep the website and shopping cart functioning;
remember account, cart and preference information;
support secure checkout and fraud prevention;
understand website traffic and performance; and
measure marketing and advertising results.
Some cookies are necessary for the website to operate. Other cookies, such as analytics or advertising cookies, may be controlled through the cookie banner or your browser settings where required.
You can block or delete cookies using your browser settings. Blocking essential cookies may prevent parts of the website, shopping cart or checkout from functioning correctly.
7. Marketing communications
We may send you marketing messages where you have consented or where another lawful basis permits us to do so. You can unsubscribe at any time by using the unsubscribe option in the message or by emailing info@merchSquad.co.za.
Unsubscribing from marketing does not prevent us from sending transactional communications concerning an enquiry, quotation, order, payment, delivery, return or other customer-service matter.
We do not sell your personal information or contact details to third parties for their own marketing purposes.
8. When we share personal information
We may share personal information with trusted service providers where reasonably necessary to operate our business and provide the Services, including:
website hosting, ecommerce and technical-support providers;
payment processors and financial institutions;
courier, delivery and collection providers;
production, printing, embroidery and fulfilment partners;
email, customer-support and marketing service providers;
analytics, security and fraud-prevention providers;
accountants, auditors, insurers and professional advisers; and
regulators, law-enforcement authorities, courts or other parties where disclosure is required or permitted by law.
These providers may process personal information only for the authorised purpose and must protect it appropriately. We share only the information reasonably necessary for the relevant service.
If our business or assets are sold, reorganised or transferred, personal information may be disclosed to relevant advisers and a prospective or actual successor, subject to appropriate confidentiality and legal safeguards.
9. Cross-border processing
Some technology, cloud, payment, analytics or communications providers may store or process personal information outside South Africa.
Where personal information is transferred across borders, we will take reasonable steps to ensure that the transfer complies with POPIA, including by using recipients subject to appropriate laws, binding agreements, corporate rules, consent or another lawful transfer basis.
10. Information security
We use reasonable and appropriate technical and organisational safeguards designed to protect personal information against loss, damage, unauthorised destruction, access, use, alteration or disclosure.
These safeguards may include access controls, passwords, secure connections, software updates, backups, staff procedures and appropriately selected service providers. No website, electronic transmission or storage system can be guaranteed to be completely secure.
You are responsible for keeping your account password confidential and should notify us if you suspect unauthorised access to your account.
11. Security compromises
If we have reasonable grounds to believe that an unauthorised person has accessed or acquired personal information, we will investigate and take reasonable steps to contain and address the incident.
Where required by POPIA, we will notify the Information Regulator and affected individuals as soon as reasonably possible, subject to any lawful delay requested by a public body responsible for preventing, detecting or investigating offences.
12. How long we retain information
We retain personal information only for as long as reasonably necessary for the purpose for which it was collected, or as required or permitted by law.
Retention periods may differ depending on the type of information. For example, we may retain:
order, payment and accounting records for legally required tax and business-record periods;
account information while the account remains active and for a reasonable period afterwards;
correspondence for customer service and dispute-resolution purposes;
marketing information until you unsubscribe or object, subject to retaining a suppression record; and
artwork and customisation files for production, possible reorders and related business records.
When personal information is no longer required, we will delete, destroy or de-identify it in accordance with applicable law.
13. Your rights
Subject to POPIA and other applicable law, you may have the right to:
ask whether we hold personal information about you;
request access to your personal information;
request correction or deletion of information that is inaccurate, irrelevant, excessive, out of date, incomplete, misleading or unlawfully obtained;
object to certain processing on reasonable grounds;
withdraw consent where processing is based on consent;
object to direct marketing;
request information about third parties or categories of third parties that have had access to your information; and
lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator.
To protect your information, we may need to verify your identity before completing a request. Some requests may be refused or limited where the law permits or requires this, and lawful fees may apply to certain access requests.
Our website is not intended for independent use by children under 18. A parent, guardian, school, club or other authorised person should place orders involving a child’s personal information.
Where we process a child’s name, size, photograph, team details or other personal information for a garment order, the person providing it must have the necessary authority or consent. We will process the information only for the order and related lawful purposes.
15. Third-party websites and services
Our website may contain links to third-party websites, social-media platforms or services that we do not control. Their collection and use of personal information are governed by their own privacy policies. We are not responsible for their independent privacy practices.
16. Changes to this policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our Services, technology, legal requirements or business practices.
The updated version will be published on this page with a revised “Last updated” date. Where a change is material, we may also provide additional notice where reasonably appropriate or legally required.
17. Contact us
For questions, requests or complaints relating to this Privacy Policy or our processing of personal information, contact:
