Terms of service

1. Who we are and what these terms cover

This website, theembroideryhouse.co.za ("the Website"), is owned and operated by Nina Ventures (Pty) Ltd (Registration No. 2025/729381/07), trading as The Embroidery House ("we", "us", "our").

These Terms of Service ("Terms") govern your access to and use of the Website, and every order you place through it. By browsing the Website, creating an account, or placing an order, you agree to be bound by these Terms.

If you do not agree with these Terms, please do not use the Website.

These Terms should be read together with our Returns & Refunds Policy and our Privacy Policy, both of which form part of your agreement with us.

Nothing in these Terms limits, restricts or waives any right you have under the Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008 ("CPA"), the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act 25 of 2002 ("ECTA"), or any other applicable South African law. Where these Terms conflict with those Acts, the Acts prevail.

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2. South Africa only

The Website is intended for customers in the Republic of South Africa. We sell, price, invoice and deliver in South African Rand within South Africa only. We do not ship internationally and do not accept international orders.

If you access the Website from outside South Africa, you do so on your own initiative and are responsible for compliance with your own local laws.

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3. Who may buy from us

To place an order you must:

• Be 18 years or older, or have the assistance and consent of a parent or legal guardian;
• Have the legal capacity to enter into a binding contract, and not be an unrehabilitated insolvent or under any legal disability;
• Provide accurate, current and complete information.

We may refuse or cancel any order where we reasonably believe these requirements are not met.

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4. Your account

If you create an account, you are responsible for keeping your login details confidential and for all activity under your account. Tell us immediately at naeem@ninaventures.com if you suspect unauthorised use.

We may suspend or close an account that is being used fraudulently, abusively, or in breach of these Terms.

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5. Products, descriptions and availability

• We take care to describe our products accurately, but product images are illustrative. Colours may render differently across screens, and accessories shown in a photograph are not included unless listed in the product description.
• Specifications, features and included accessories are those of the manufacturer and may change without notice. Where a manufacturer changes a specification, the current manufacturer specification applies.
• Stock is not reserved until an order is paid for and accepted. Listing a product on the Website is not a guarantee that it is in stock.
• If an item becomes unavailable after you have paid, we will contact you and offer a full refund, a suitable alternative, or a backorder — your choice. Refunds in these circumstances are processed as set out in our Returns & Refunds Policy.

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6. Prices

6.1 Currency and inclusions

All prices are shown in South African Rand (ZAR) and are the total price payable for the product itself. Delivery charges are additional and are calculated or quoted as set out in clause 8.

6.2 Tax

Configuration note — delete this box before publishing. These Terms are written on the basis that Nina Ventures (Pty) Ltd is not currently a registered VAT vendor. Do not display "incl. VAT" anywhere on the Website, and ensure Shopify's tax settings are not adding VAT. Once you register for VAT, replace this clause with: "All prices include Value Added Tax at the prevailing rate. Our VAT registration number is [number]." and update your Shopify tax settings on the same day.

6.3 Price changes and errors

Prices may change at any time without notice. A change does not affect an order we have already accepted.

Despite our best efforts, a product may occasionally be listed at an incorrect price — for example through a data-entry error, a supplier feed error, or a technical fault. Where a price is obviously and inadvertently wrong, and we correct it and notify you before dispatch, we are not obliged to sell at the incorrect price and will offer you the choice of paying the corrected price or receiving a full refund. This reflects the exception permitted under Section 23(10) of the CPA and applies only to genuine, obvious errors — not to prices we simply regret.

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7. Orders and when a contract is formed

1. Adding an item to your cart and completing checkout constitutes an offer to buy, not a concluded sale.
2. The automated order confirmation email is an acknowledgement that we received your offer. It is not acceptance.
3. A binding contract comes into existence only when we accept your order in writing or dispatch the goods, whichever happens first.
4. We may decline an order for any lawful reason, including stock unavailability, a pricing error, a suspected fraudulent transaction, a failed payment, an address we cannot deliver to, or an order placed for resale in a manner inconsistent with our dealer arrangements.
5. If we decline an order you have already paid for, we refund you in full.

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8. Delivery, risk and ownership

8.1 Standard items

Consumables, accessories and smaller items are delivered by courier nationwide.

• Orders of [FREE_DELIVERY_THRESHOLD] and above: delivery is free.
• Orders below [FREE_DELIVERY_THRESHOLD]: a flat delivery fee of [FLAT_DELIVERY_FEE] applies, shown at checkout before you pay.
• Estimated delivery: [STANDARD_LEAD_TIME] working days from acceptance of your order.

8.2 Machines and large or heavy items

Sewing, embroidery, overlocking, professional and craft machines are heavy, high-value and require specialised handling and insurance. Delivery for these items is quoted separately after your order is placed.

• We contact you with a delivery quotation, typically within 2 working days.
• You are not charged for delivery until you accept the quotation. If you do not accept it, you may cancel the order and receive a full refund of the product price.
• Estimated delivery: [MACHINE_LEAD_TIME] working days from acceptance of the delivery quotation.

8.3 General

• Delivery estimates are estimates, not guarantees. Courier delays, load-shedding, weather, strikes and supplier backorders can affect timing. We will keep you informed.
• We deliver to street addresses in South Africa. We do not deliver to post boxes.
• Someone aged 18 or over must be present to receive and sign for the delivery.
• If delivery fails because nobody was available, the address was incorrect, or access was refused, redelivery is charged at cost.
• Risk in the goods passes to you on delivery and acceptance. Until then, the goods are at our risk.
• Ownership of the goods passes to you only once we have received payment in full.

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9. Payment

9.1 How you pay

Payments are processed by Stitch, a licensed South African payment service provider. Depending on what is enabled at checkout, you may pay by card, Pay by bank (including Capitec Pay, Absa Pay and Nedbank Direct EFT), digital wallet, or manual EFT.

9.2 Your card details

We never see, handle or store your full card or banking credentials. These are captured and processed directly by Stitch under its own security standards. Your use of Stitch is subject to Stitch's own terms and privacy practices in addition to ours.

9.3 Authorisation and failed payments

• Your order is processed only once payment is authorised and received.
• If a payment is reversed, charged back or fails after dispatch, we reserve the right to recover the goods or the amount due.
• Where a manual EFT is used, your order is held but stock is not reserved until funds reflect in our account.

9.4 Pay Later and instalment options

If an instalment or "Pay Later" option is offered at checkout, that arrangement is a separate credit agreement between you and the credit provider, governed by the National Credit Act 34 of 2005 and by that provider's terms. Nina Ventures (Pty) Ltd is not the credit provider, does not assess your affordability, and is not party to that agreement. Any query about instalments, interest, fees or arrears must be directed to the credit provider.

Your rights against us in respect of the goods themselves are unaffected.

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10. Promotions, discount codes and bundles

• Promotional pricing, combo deals and specials are valid for the stated period or while stocks last, whichever ends first.
• Promotions are not retrospective. They do not apply to orders already placed and are not price-matched or backdated.
• Discount codes have no cash value, cannot be exchanged for cash, and may not be combined with other offers unless expressly stated.
• We may limit quantities per customer, per household or per order on promotional items.
• Where a promotion combines products, the promotional price applies to the complete bundle only. Returns and refunds on bundles are governed by Section 6 of our Returns & Refunds Policy.
• We may withdraw or amend a promotion at any time before an order is accepted.

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11. Returns, refunds and cancellations

Your rights to cancel, return goods and obtain a refund — including the seven-day cooling-off right under Section 44 of ECTA and your rights in respect of defective goods under Sections 55 and 56 of the CPA — are set out in full in our Returns & Refunds Policy, which forms part of these Terms.

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12. Warranty and after-sales support

All new machines carry the manufacturer's warranty, honoured through the authorised Brother South Africa service network or the relevant supplier's authorised service agent. Warranty terms vary by model and by whether the machine is used domestically or commercially, and are set out on each product page and on the warranty card in the box.

The manufacturer warranty is separate from, and additional to, your statutory rights. Full detail is in Section 11 of our Returns & Refunds Policy.

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13. Intellectual property

All content on the Website — including the name The Embroidery House, our logo, page copy, layout, photography, graphics and design elements — is owned by or licensed to Nina Ventures (Pty) Ltd and is protected by South African and international copyright and trade mark law.

You may view and print pages for your own personal, non-commercial use. You may not copy, reproduce, republish, scrape, mirror, sell or commercially exploit any part of the Website without our prior written permission.

Brother, Empisal and other manufacturer names, logos, product names and product photography remain the property of their respective owners and are used on this Website under dealer arrangements for the purpose of describing and selling genuine product. Nothing here transfers any right in those marks to you.

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14. Acceptable use

You may not:

• Use the Website unlawfully, fraudulently, or for any purpose other than genuine browsing and purchasing;
• Place orders using false details, another person's payment method, or an automated ordering tool;
• Scrape, harvest or systematically extract data, pricing or images from the Website;
• Introduce malware, attempt to gain unauthorised access to the Website or its systems, or interfere with its operation;
• Reproduce our content on a competing site or marketplace.

We may suspend access, cancel orders and take legal action where these terms are breached.

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15. Reviews and content you submit

If you submit a review, comment, image or other content, you confirm that it is your own, accurate, and not unlawful, defamatory, offensive or infringing.

You grant us a non-exclusive, royalty-free licence to use, publish, adapt and display that content in connection with the Website and our marketing. We may remove any content at our discretion, without giving reasons.

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16. Availability of the Website

We work to keep the Website available, but we do not guarantee uninterrupted access. The Website may be unavailable for maintenance, updates, or reasons beyond our control, including connectivity failures, load-shedding and hosting outages. We are not liable for loss arising from unavailability.

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17. Third-party links and services

The Website may link to third-party sites, including manufacturer websites and our payment provider. We do not control those sites, do not endorse their content, and are not responsible for their terms, privacy practices or availability.

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18. Limitation of liability

To the fullest extent permitted by South African law, and subject always to your rights under the CPA:

• We are not liable for indirect, incidental, special or consequential loss, including loss of profit, loss of business, loss of production time, or loss of embroidery or design files;
• We are not liable for loss arising from your misuse of a machine, failure to follow the manufacturer's instructions, use of non-approved parts, needles or materials, or maintenance and repair performed by anyone other than an authorised service agent;
• We are not liable for damage caused by power surges, load-shedding, incorrect voltage or unstable electricity supply;
• Where we are found liable, our liability is limited to the amount you paid for the goods concerned.

These limitations do not apply to, and we do not attempt to exclude, liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence, for fraud, for gross negligence, or for anything else that may not lawfully be excluded under Section 51 of the CPA.

Back up your embroidery and design files. We cannot recover data lost from a machine, memory card or storage device sent to us for assessment or repair.

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19. Indemnity

You indemnify us against any claim, loss, damage or expense arising from your breach of these Terms, your unlawful use of the Website, or your infringement of a third party's rights.

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20. Privacy and personal information

We process personal information in accordance with the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 ("POPIA") and our Privacy Policy. By using the Website you consent to that processing as described in the Privacy Policy.

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21. Electronic communications

You consent to receiving communications from us electronically, including order confirmations, delivery updates and service notices. Electronic communications satisfy any legal requirement that a communication be in writing.

Marketing communications are sent only where you have opted in, and every marketing message includes an unsubscribe option.

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22. Changes to these Terms

We may amend these Terms at any time by posting an updated version on the Website. The version in force at the time you place an order is the version that governs that order. Please check the "Last updated" date.

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23. Circumstances beyond our control

We are not in breach of these Terms, and are not liable for delay or failure to perform, where the cause is beyond our reasonable control — including supplier failure, import delays, courier disruption, strikes, civil unrest, natural disaster, national grid failure, or government action.

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24. General

• Severability. If any clause is found to be invalid or unenforceable, the rest remains in force.
• No waiver. If we do not enforce a right, that is not a waiver of it.
• Whole agreement. These Terms, together with the Returns & Refunds Policy and the Privacy Policy, form the whole agreement between us.
• Cession. You may not cede or assign your rights under these Terms without our written consent. We may cede ours on notice to you.
• Addresses. Our address for legal notices is 3 Lavender Lane, 6757 Croaker Street, Centurion, Gauteng, 0157. Yours is the delivery address given at checkout.

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25. Governing law and disputes

These Terms are governed by the laws of the Republic of South Africa.

We would far rather resolve a problem directly — contact us first at naeem@ninaventures.com or 076 513 9007 and we will respond within 5 working days.

If we cannot resolve it, you may refer the matter to:

• The Consumer Goods and Services Ombud (CGSO) — 0860 000 272 | www.cgso.org.za
• The National Consumer Commission (NCC) — www.thencc.org.za

Nothing prevents either of us from approaching a court of competent jurisdiction. We consent to the jurisdiction of the Magistrate's Court in terms of Section 45 of the Magistrates' Courts Act 32 of 1944, without limiting your right to approach a higher court.

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26. Company and contact details

Required by Section 43 of the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act: