Customers' Terms and Conditions
General Information
For all your orders in the context of this online offer CowCow.com ("CowCow"), CowCow, Unit 911, New City Center, 2 Lei Yue Mun Road, Kwun Tong, Kowloon, Hong Kong, is your contracting partner. All services from CowCow to the customer are carried out based on the general terms and conditions given below. These underlie all offers and agreements between CowCow and the customer and are accepted for the duration of the whole business relationship. Opposing or deviating conditions of the buyer are only binding if CowCow has agreed to them in writing.
Responsibility for Online Offer
- Two store types are available on the CowCow site. First, there are stores which are designed and operated by CowCow, (referred hereafter as "CowCow Store(s)"), and second, there are stores which are designed and operated by independent store owners ("Partner Store(s)"). Information on the respective owner of a store can be viewed via the "legal" link in the respective store.
- CowCow is responsible for the articles and designs offered in a CowCow Store, as well as the overall design of the store.
- The store owner is solely responsible for the products and designs offered in a Partner Store as well as the design of the store, and the advertising of the articles offered. Only with the placing of an order and the subsequent related manufacturing of the product(s) does CowCow use the designs and products of the store owner.
Standard Terms
- The "offers" within the website, in CowCow Stores, and in Partner Stores represent a non-binding invitation for the customer to place an order with CowCow.
- By filling out and sending an order form on the internet, the customer makes a binding offer for a contract of sale or, as the case may be, a contract for work and materials. CowCow sends an order confirmation via e-mail to the customer. The order confirmation does not represent an acceptance of the offer, but shall only acknowledge to the customer that their order was received by CowCow. The contract is only accepted when CowCow ships the ordered product to the customer and confirms the shipment (shipment confirmation).
- CowCow reserves the right to reject any received orders for any reason without notice to the customer, if deemed necessary.
- The contract ends with the complete delivery to the customer supplied address through CowCow's chosen shipment provider. If there is an interruption of delivery, and CowCow fails to cover a congruent substitute transaction in a business reasonable time frame, the customer shall be informed immediately about the non-availability of the service. If the case of the customer having already paid, then the funds paid shall be refunded.
Delivery / Shipment
- Delivery may take up to several weeks for shipment due to unforeseen delays or longer transit periods. Delivery times and terms of delivery shall only be binding insofar as CowCow has expressly agreed to such in writing. Typical, delivery times are 10-16 business days, but can take up to 4 weeks in certain circumstances.
- Delivery is available for most countries. More information can be found within the Help section.
- Delivery shall be conducted by a shipment service provider chosen by CowCow. The customer has to pay standard shipping costs which may depend on order value, and where the order is shipped to.
Prices
- For all shipments, stated prices are net prices. The shipping address is decisive. If, according to the statutory regulations, the goods are subject to sales or other taxes in the recipient country, then these shall be paid additionally upon receipt of the goods. Furthermore, the goods may be subject to import duties which the customer shall pay additionally upon receipt of the goods.
- The customer has to pay shipping and handling, which may depend on order value and the delivery location.
- Purchase price, along with shipping and handling charges are immediately payable, without deduction.
Payment
- Payment will be carried out according to the customer's choice of credit card, PayPal or CashDollar. CowCow reserves the right to limit the method of payment chosen by the customer depending on order value, shipment region or other objective criteria.
- In case of the method of payment chosen by the customer not being practicable, where CowCow has met its contractual obligations, then the customer shall reimburse any additional costs incurred by CowCow or a third party which carried out the transaction.
- CowCow is entitled to make use of the services of trustworthy third parties for the handling of the payment:
- If it comes to a default of payment of the customer, CowCow is allowed to assign its claims to a debt collection agency and transfer the personal data required for the handling of payments to these third parties.
- In the case of intervention of third parties in the handling of payments, then payment in relation to CowCow only counts as made if the amount has been provided contractually to the third party, so that the third party can dispose of it as it sees fit.
Conditions of Sale
- Up to the payment of any monies owed to CowCow and the order is shipped, the goods remain the property of CowCow.
- The customer is obliged to handle the product with care up to the transfer of ownership.
Guarantee
- Information, drawings, figures, technical data, specifications of weight, measurements and services, which are contained in brochures, catalogs, newsletters, ads or price lists only are of an informational nature. No responsibility is accepted by CowCow for the correctness of this information. Regarding type and scope of delivery only the information shall be decisive which is contained in the order confirmation.
- As far as there is a defect in the goods which falls under warranty, the customer shall be entitled to a replacement, to cancel the order, or keep the order at a reduced price, agreed by both parties.
- Data communication via the internet, considering the current state of the technology, cannot be guaranteed as being flawless and / or available at any time. Thus, CowCow shall not be liable for the continuous and uninterrupted availability of the online offer, or claims made about CowCow by parties other than CowCow employees and partners.
- The term of limitation for claims under warranty for the goods provided is one year starting from the receipt of such goods. If the customer is in business then the term of limitation is six months.
Limitation of Liability
- CowCow only bears responsibility for damages, no matter what the legal ground, in the case of deliberate action and gross negligence. CowCow's liability is limited to the payment of the foreseeable, typically occurring damage.
- As far as liability of CowCow is excluded or limited in these general terms and conditions then the same applies for personal liability related to the order for damages on the part of employees, representatives and agents of CowCow.
Copyrights to Print Designs, Release from Liability
- If the customer uploads their own design or influences the product in any other way (text personalization), the customer assures CowCow that design and text are free from any third- party rights. The costs for possible infringements of copyright, personal rights or naming rights are to be borne completely by the customer, in this case. The customer also assures that by individualization of the product he does not infringe upon any other third-party rights.
- The customer releases CowCow from all demands and claims which are made due to the infringement of such third-party rights, as far as the customer is responsible for the breach of duty. The customer shall be wholly responsible and shall promptly reimburse CowCow for all defense costs and other damages resulting from any such action.
Technical and Design Deviations
When fulfilling the contract, we expressly reserve the right to deviate from the descriptions and information in our brochures, catalogs and other written and electronic documents with respect to material, color, weight, measurements, design or other features, as far as these can be considered reasonable for the customer. Reasonable cause for change may result from fluctuations customary in trade and technical production processes.
Data Protection
CowCow uses personal data of the customer for appropriate purposes and according to statutory regulations. The personal data given (e.g. name, e-mail address, mailing address, credit card details) for ordering products are used by CowCow for fulfillment and handling of the contract. This data is treated confidentially by CowCow and is not given to any third parties who are not part of the ordering, delivery and payment procedures. The customer shall be entitled to access information on the personal data which CowCow has saved about them free of charge. Moreover, they are entitled to the correction of incorrect data, and the blocking and deletion of their personal data, insofar as there is no legal obligation to retain such data.
Place of Fulfillment
- Place of fulfillment for all services is the place of business of CowCow in Hong Kong.
- If individual provisions of these general terms and conditions are ineffective or oppose the statutory regulations, the rest of the agreement remains in affect.
Store Owners' Terms and Conditions
Introduction
For the establishment and on-going operation of an online, custom merchandise store (Store), CowCow.com (CowCow) and the party opening, maintaining and / or promoting that store (Store Owner) are the contracting parties.
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Object of the Agreement
- The Store Owner provides one or several print designs in their respective(s) for products provided by CowCow (CowCow products) and / or promotes the Store, online or offline. In return, the Store Owner – instead of a fixed remuneration – receives a profit-related, variable commission according to point 5 of this agreement resulting from the sale of products via the provided Store.
- Store products are products which are offered for sale through the Store and are printed with the designs provided by CowCow, the store owner or the end customer.
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Granting of Usage Rights
- The Store Owner grants CowCow the right to use the print designs provided according to point 1.2. This right to use includes, but is not limited to, printing, publishing, reproducing and / or labeling CowCow products with the print design of the Store Owner and print, publish, reproduce, offer and / or distribute such labeled products (hereafter referred to as contractual products) for the purposes of fulfilling the contracted services for a Store.
- The granting of usage rights to CowCow according to point 2.1 takes place non-exclusively and for an unlimited period of time up to the canceling of the agreement by either party according to point 11. Any products on order, in the process of manufacturing, or in shipping before such cancellation will continue to be fulfilled.
- Copyrights or other rights to a print design provided by the Store Owner remain with the Store Owner. CowCow is not entitled to distribute designs of the owner either in its own stores, in stores of third parties or via other channels of distribution if the store owner has not expressly agreed to this.
- CowCow is allowed to use the Store Owner's print design for advertising purposes on the website or for other types of advertisement for CowCow. In such cases, CowCow will link all images or advertisements of that design to the Store of the Store Owner.
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Usage and Third-Party Rights
- The Store Owner is solely responsible for the content (in particular print designs, background images, slogans, etc.) uploaded, or otherwise added through the CowCow interface, to the Store.
- The Store Owner guarantees that the content and / or print designs – which he provided for use to CowCow according to these general terms and conditions – was created by him and / or that he is the owner of all usage rights to the content and / or design, in particular rights concerning trademark, copyrights, patents, licenses and or other usage rights. The store owner guarantees to be the sole and exclusive holder of the usage rights granted to CowCow according to these general terms and conditions.
- The Store Owner guarantees that he does not know of any third-party rights which oppose or could oppose the use of the content and / or print design by CowCow according to these general terms and conditions.
- The Store Owner assures that all content and print designs uploaded to the Store are free of third-party rights and that their usage does not infringe upon patents, licenses, trademark rights or other third-party rights.
- The Store Owners assures that the respective print design provided for use to CowCow is also in accordance with other statutory regulations, in particular legal regulations concerning protection of minors and does not violate any penal prohibitions.
- If third parties assert claims due to infringement of their rights resulting from the use of a design of the store owner, CowCow reserves the right to withhold royalties (commissions) up to the final clarification of the legal dispute.
- If the design, which was licensed by the store owners, is wrongfully used or obviously misappropriated, in opinion of CowCow, then the parties will jointly decide on the steps to be taken regarding prosecution.
- The Store Owners is not liable for print designs provided by CowCow or provided on a one- off basis by the end customer to the Store (in particular text personalization).
- The Store Owner is obliged to immediately inform CowCow in writing if claims are made against the Store Owner due to the infringement of third-party rights resulting from the content and / or print designs in the Store.
- If third parties assert claims to CowCow due to infringement of their rights, then it is at the sole discretion of CowCow to remove the content and / or print design objected to, partly or completely, from the Store.
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Contact Details and Legal Information
- The Store Owner must provide a complete and correct mailing address.
- If the Store Owner fails to provide complete contact details and legal information, then the products of his store will not be released for viewing to the end customer and cannot be ordered.
- Incorrect information may result in the immediate cancellation of the store and the withholding of possible existing commissions.
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Payment of the Store Owner
- The Store Owner receives a certain amount for every product, for which he has set a marked-up price, sold in his Store, excluding the base price of the item set by CowCow.
- The amount marked up is set by the Store Owner for each individual product offered for sale.
- The product price is the CowCow base price, plus Store Owner markup fees. CowCow reserves the right to change of the base price of CowCow products at any time.
- Settlement and payment to the Store Owner will be made as instructed by the Store Owner into the Store Owner's specified PayPal account. The minimum amount payable is $25.00 USD. Amounts which lie beneath the minimum amount payable are paid after cancellation of all agreements between CowCow and the Store Owner regarding the Store within six months of the cancellation coming into effect, if no new agreement is made by CowCow and the Store Owner within this period.
- The Store Owner is responsible for providing CowCow with his/her current, required, valid payment details. The Store Owner will be held liable for providing incorrect payment details.
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Embedding of the Partner Store by the Store Owner
- The Store Owner can publish the Store on his website; however, there is no obligation to do so. It is published via an electronic reference ("link") provided by CowCow, which the Store Owner embeds in his website and which refers to the Store of the Store Owner. If it is published, the Store Owner is committed to include the link generated by CowCow without changes. In particular, the Store Owner is not permitted to carry out changes which are related to the electronic advertisement linked to the store or the publishing of general terms and conditions for the end customer.
- On request, a Store free of advertisement can be acquired in return for a monthly fee.
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Privity of Contract with End Customers; Rights to Change Service
- Customers purchasing products via the Store are customers of CowCow. An independent privity of contract is created between customers and CowCow, which is independent of a possible privity of contract between the Store Owner and the customer who visits the non-store pages of the Store Owner. Thus, only the rules, guidelines and business practices of CowCow regarding customer's orders, customer service and product sales apply to the customer.
- CowCow can change store settings, store offerings, product offerings, guidelines, pricing, availability, business operations, and order processing at any time, and temporarily.
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Enquiries / Purchase Order Processing
- CowCow reserves the right to reject inquiries and orders which do not meet the respective requirements set by CowCow.
- CowCow reserves the right to reject orders from customers who are known for not being credit-worthy or show as being a credit risk.
- CowCow is responsible for all processing and execution of orders. In this respect, CowCow creates i.e. order forms, books payments, executes cancellation and returns and is responsible for the customer service.
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Sales Reports
- CowCow registers the sales made through the Store and provides the Store Owner with a summary of the statistics. Form and content of the statistics can be modified by CowCow at any time.
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Restriction of Liability, Exclusion of Liability and Release
- The Store Owner is liable towards CowCow for all damages suffered by CowCow resulting from the use of the content and / or print design provided by the Store Owner according to these general terms and conditions, in particular publishing and reproduction, when this violates third-party rights and / or infringes upon other statutory regulations.
- This liability of the Store Owner includes all costs incurred by CowCow in the form of legal costs, as well as any costs and compensation payment which a court may award against CowCow, resulting from the usage of the content and / or print design of the Store Owner, or in so far as CowCow is included in any settlement. The Store Owner obligates himself to release CowCow of all aforementioned costs and damage claims. In such cases, CowCow is entitled to receive an advance payment from the Store Owner to the amount of the estimated defense costs.
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A liability of CowCow towards the Store Owner, no matter what the legal grounds is defined as follows:
CowCow is liable provided that the Store Owner proves claims which are based on malice, willful intent, gross negligence or the breach of contractual duty on the part of CowCow, its executive employees or agents.
- CowCow's liability in the case of negligent behavior, as proven in point 10.3 above, is limited only to foreseeable, direct, consequential damage.
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Period of Validity / Cancellation
- This agreement is considered valid – for an unlimited amount of time – until it is canceled by either party. Store Owners cancel a Store by deactivation in the form of a written request. CowCow cancels this agreement by notification to the Store Owner via the email address provided.
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Modifications of Provisions
- CowCow will publish any modifications of these general terms and conditions on its website "www.cowcow.com/help-termsnconditions.html". Store Owners are bound to any modifications as long as this agreement or parts of it are considered valid.
- It is agreed that such a change affects neither other rights and duties articled in this agreement. If the store owner does not agree with a modification made, a cancellation without notice is possible at any time.
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Place of Fulfillment
- Place of fulfillment for all services is the place of business of CowCow in Hong Kong.
- If individual provisions of these general terms and conditions are ineffective or oppose the statutory regulations, the rest of the agreement remains in affect.
These Terms and Conditions were last updated on 31st December 2011.