Shipping policy
This Shipping, Electronic Delivery and Service-Related Samples Policy applies to CLOWNHAUS (PTY) LTD, registration number 2020/479322/07 / K2020479322, trading as CLOWNHAUS®.
For purposes of this Policy, "CLOWNHAUS®", "we", "us" or "our" refers to CLOWNHAUS (PTY) LTD. "You" or "your" refers to any website visitor, prospective client, client, requester, or other person who uses the website, requests services, or engages with CLOWNHAUS®.
CLOWNHAUS® operates as a South African cosmetic consulting and advisory services business. As of the effective date of this Policy, CLOWNHAUS® provides services only and does not sell physical cosmetic products, finished goods, skincare products, raw materials, or standalone digital products through the website.
This Policy must be read together with our Website Terms of Service, Service Terms / Terms of Engagement, Privacy Policy, Refund, Cancellation and Rescheduling Policy, Legal Notice, any applicable NDA, quotation, invoice, proposal, written scope of work, or other written agreement issued or accepted by CLOWNHAUS®.
1. No Retail Product Shipping
CLOWNHAUS® does not currently operate as a physical product e-commerce store.
CLOWNHAUS® does not currently sell, dispatch, deliver, or ship retail skincare products, cosmetic products, raw materials, finished goods, merchandise, or other physical goods through the website.
Accordingly, ordinary retail shipping terms do not apply at this stage, including:
1. free shipping thresholds;
2. standard product delivery times;
3. retail product tracking;
4. damaged parcel claims for purchased goods;
5. lost parcel claims for purchased goods;
6. unopened product returns;
7. retail product exchanges;
8. stock availability;
9. replacement products; and
10. product return authorisation numbers.
Any reference to shipping on Shopify's default policy page must be understood in the context of this Policy and the current service-based nature of CLOWNHAUS®.
2. Service-Related Samples
Although CLOWNHAUS® does not currently sell physical products through the website, certain services may involve the controlled sending or receiving of physical samples as part of a consulting, advisory, formulation, troubleshooting, benchmarking, research and development, or related service engagement.
Service-related samples may include, where applicable:
1. R&D samples prepared by or for CLOWNHAUS® and sent to a client;
2. client-supplied benchmark products;
3. client-supplied formulation samples;
4. client-supplied product samples for troubleshooting;
5. client-supplied packaging samples;
6. comparative product samples;
7. texture, sensory, colour, odour, stability, or performance reference samples;
8. manufacturer or supplier samples relevant to an agreed service scope; and
9. any other sample expressly agreed in writing as part of a service engagement.
Service-related samples are not retail goods sold through the website. They are handled only where relevant to an agreed service, quotation, proposal, written scope of work, NDA, or other written agreement issued or accepted by CLOWNHAUS®.
3. Sending Samples to CLOWNHAUS®
Where a client is required or permitted to send samples to CLOWNHAUS®, the client is responsible for ensuring that the samples are lawfully supplied, accurately described, appropriately packaged, and suitable for courier or delivery.
Unless otherwise agreed in writing, the client is responsible for:
1. courier selection;
2. courier fees;
3. packaging;
4. correct labelling;
5. delivery address confirmation;
6. delivery tracking;
7. risk of loss or damage in transit;
8. ensuring that samples are not prohibited, unsafe, hazardous, leaking, contaminated, unlawfully supplied, or unsuitable for transport;
9. providing relevant context, batch information, product description, or handling instructions; and
10. notifying CLOWNHAUS® in advance that samples are being sent.
CLOWNHAUS® is not responsible for any sample that is lost, delayed, damaged, leaking, contaminated, compromised, or misdirected before CLOWNHAUS® receives it.
CLOWNHAUS® may refuse to accept, open, handle, test, review, store, or return any sample that appears unsafe, leaking, improperly packaged, contaminated, incorrectly declared, suspicious, unlawfully supplied, or outside the agreed scope of work.
4. Sending Samples to Clients
Where CLOWNHAUS® sends R&D samples, formulation samples, reference samples, or other service-related samples to a client, such samples are provided only for the purpose expressly agreed in writing.
Unless otherwise agreed in writing, samples sent by CLOWNHAUS®:
1. are not retail products;
2. are not finished commercial goods;
3. are not supplied for resale;
4. are not supplied for public distribution;
5. are not supplied for marketing use;
6. are not supplied for consumer use unless expressly agreed in writing;
7. are not evidence of final formulation approval;
8. are not evidence of product safety approval;
9. are not evidence of regulatory compliance;
10. are not evidence of stability, preservative efficacy, packaging compatibility, or manufacturing readiness;
11. may be experimental, developmental, preliminary, or non-final; and
12. must be handled only in accordance with any instructions, limitations, or warnings provided by CLOWNHAUS®.
The client must not sell, distribute, relabel, repackage, market, publish claims about, or supply any CLOWNHAUS® sample to any third party unless CLOWNHAUS® has expressly agreed to this in writing.
5. Courier Costs and Delivery Arrangements for Samples
Courier fees, delivery arrangements, packaging requirements, and responsibility for sample transport will be addressed in the applicable quotation, invoice, proposal, written scope of work, Service Terms/Terms of Engagement, NDA, or other written agreement.
Unless otherwise agreed in writing:
1. the client is responsible for courier costs when sending samples to CLOWNHAUS®;
2. the client is responsible for courier costs where samples need to be returned to the client;
3. CLOWNHAUS® may charge courier, packaging, handling, or administrative fees for sending samples to the client;
4. delivery timelines are estimates only;
5. courier delays do not automatically entitle the client to a refund, discount, or replacement service; and
6. CLOWNHAUS® is not responsible for courier failures outside its reasonable control.
Where CLOWNHAUS® arranges courier delivery, CLOWNHAUS® may use a courier, delivery service, or other transport method selected at its discretion, unless otherwise agreed in writing.
6. Risk in Transit
Risk in service-related samples is governed by the applicable written agreement. Where no specific written agreement applies, the following default position applies:
1. samples sent by the client to CLOWNHAUS® remain at the client’s risk until received by CLOWNHAUS®;
2. samples sent by CLOWNHAUS® to the client are at the client's risk once handed to the courier or delivery service, unless otherwise agreed in writing;
3. CLOWNHAUS® is not responsible for courier delay, loss, theft, breakage, leakage, temperature exposure, mishandling, or damage outside CLOWNHAUS®'s reasonable control;
4. the client is responsible for checking delivered samples promptly on receipt; and
5. any issue with delivered samples must be reported to CLOWNHAUS® in writing within a reasonable period.
Nothing in this Policy excludes any right that cannot lawfully be excluded under applicable law.
7. Sample Condition, Stability and Handling
Cosmetic samples, R&D samples, benchmark samples, troubleshooting samples, and formulation-related samples may be affected by storage, handling, and transport conditions; temperature; light exposure; container compatibility; microbial contamination; oxidation; leakage; breakage; age; batch variation; or other factors.
Unless expressly agreed in writing, CLOWNHAUS® does not guarantee that any sample:
1. will remain physically, chemically, microbiologically, or aesthetically unchanged during transport;
2. will be suitable for consumer use;
3. will be suitable for sale;
4. will be suitable for manufacturing scale-up;
5. will be stable;
6. will pass preservative efficacy testing;
7. will pass microbiological testing;
8. will be compatible with final packaging;
9. will comply with applicable cosmetic regulations; or
10. will represent a final approved product.
Where relevant, stability testing, preservative efficacy testing, microbiological testing, packaging compatibility testing, toxicological review, safety assessment, regulatory review, and manufacturing validation must be scoped, performed, and documented separately.
8. Disposal, Return or Retention of Samples
Unless otherwise agreed in writing, CLOWNHAUS® may determine whether samples are retained, returned, consumed during review, used for assessment, archived temporarily, or disposed of after the relevant service purpose has been fulfilled.
CLOWNHAUS® may dispose of samples where:
1. the sample is leaking, unsafe, unstable, contaminated, deteriorated, expired, or unsuitable for storage;
2. the agreed review or service has been completed;
3. the client has not arranged collection or return within a reasonable period;
4. storage is no longer necessary;
5. the sample falls outside the agreed service scope;
6. the sample presents handling, hygiene, safety, contamination, odour, leakage, or storage concerns; or
7. disposal is otherwise reasonable in the circumstances.
If the client requires samples to be returned, this must be agreed in writing before the samples are sent to CLOWNHAUS®. Return courier costs may be for the client's account unless otherwise agreed in writing.
9. Electronic Delivery of Service Deliverables
Where CLOWNHAUS® provides written reports, consultation summaries, advisory documents, technical notes, formulation-related documents, regulatory notes, training materials, templates prepared as part of a service engagement, or other service deliverables, such deliverables will ordinarily be provided electronically.
Electronic delivery may occur by:
1. email;
2. secure file link;
3. electronic document attachment;
4. shared folder;
5. video call follow-up;
6. written consultation summary;
7. invoice-linked communication; or
8. another electronic method agreed in writing.
CLOWNHAUS® does not guarantee delivery through any specific electronic platform unless expressly agreed in writing.
10. Delivery Timelines for Service Deliverables
Any timeline for service deliverables will be governed by the applicable quotation, invoice, proposal, written scope of work, Service Terms / Terms of Engagement, NDA, or other written agreement issued or accepted by CLOWNHAUS®.
Service timelines are not retail shipping timelines.
Estimated service timelines may depend on:
1. receipt of payment;
2. receipt of signed documents;
3. receipt of required client information;
4. receipt of technical documents;
5. receipt or dispatch of relevant samples;
6. client approvals;
7. availability of third-party information;
8. complexity of the service;
9. scope changes;
10. client response times;
11. regulatory or technical complexity; and
12. any other factor relevant to the agreed service.
Client delay, incomplete information, changed instructions, missing documents, late approvals, courier delays, or sample-related delays may affect timelines and do not automatically entitle the client to a refund, discount, or priority delivery.
11. Client Responsibility for Electronic Access
You are responsible for providing accurate and functional contact details, including the correct email address for communication and electronic delivery.
CLOWNHAUS® is not responsible for delays or non-receipt caused by:
1. incorrect email addresses;
2. inaccessible inboxes;
3. full mailboxes;
4. spam or junk mail filtering;
5. blocked attachments;
6. client-side IT restrictions;
7. expired file links after reasonable access has been provided;
8. failure to download or save deliverables;
9. failure to notify CLOWNHAUS® of a delivery issue within a reasonable time; or
10. technical issues outside CLOWNHAUS®'s reasonable control.
If you believe that an electronic deliverable has not been received, you must notify CLOWNHAUS® in writing at info@clownhaus.com.
12. No Digital Products Currently Sold
As at the effective date of this Policy, CLOWNHAUS® does not sell digital products, downloadable resources, paid templates, paid workbooks, paid recordings, online courses, or other standalone digital products through the website.
If CLOWNHAUS® introduces digital products, downloadable resources, paid templates, training materials, or other online products in future, this Policy and the applicable website policies may be updated before or at the time those products are made available.
Future digital products may be subject to separate licence terms, access conditions, delivery terms, refund terms, intellectual property restrictions, and usage limitations.
13. Third-Party Platforms and Technical Availability
CLOWNHAUS® may use third-party platforms, service providers, email systems, cloud storage systems, website platforms, courier services, or communication tools to support electronic communication, sample transfer, and delivery of service-related materials.
CLOWNHAUS® is not responsible for interruptions, delays, outages, access restrictions, file-size limitations, spam filtering, cybersecurity measures, courier failures, or technical failures caused by third-party platforms, client-side systems, internet service providers, courier service providers, or circumstances outside CLOWNHAUS®'s reasonable control.
Where an electronic delivery or sample delivery issue occurs, CLOWNHAUS® may use a reasonable alternative delivery method where appropriate.
14. Relationship with Refund and Service Terms
This Policy does not create any independent right to a refund.
Refunds, cancellations, rescheduling, no-shows, project fees, client delays, service-fee disputes, courier-related sample issues, and sample-related delays are governed by the Refund, Cancellation and Rescheduling Policy, the Service Terms / Terms of Engagement, and any applicable invoice, quotation, proposal, written scope of work, NDA, or other written agreement issued or accepted by CLOWNHAUS®.
15. Contact
For questions about this Policy, electronic delivery, or service-related samples, contact:
CLOWNHAUS (PTY) LTD
Trading as CLOWNHAUS®
Company registration number: 2020/479322/07 / K2020479322
Email: info@clownhaus.com