Privacy Policy

Effective Date: 21 July 2026

1. Introduction

Welcome to Rare Thread ("Rare Thread", "we", "our", or "us"). We are committed to protecting your privacy and ensuring that your personal information is collected, used, stored and disclosed responsibly in accordance with the Protection of Personal Information Act, 4 of 2013 ("POPIA").

This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose and safeguard your personal information when you visit https://rarethread.online, purchase products, or interact with our services.

By using our website, you agree to the practices described in this Privacy Policy.

2. Responsible Party

Business Name: Rare Thread

Website: https://rarethread.online

Email: info@rarethread.online

3. Information We Collect

Personal Information

Full name
Email address
Telephone number
Delivery address
Billing address
Company name (where applicable)

Order Information

Products purchased
Order history
Payment status
Shipping information

Technical Information

IP address
Browser type
Device information
Cookies
Website usage data
Referral pages

Marketing Information

Where you choose to receive marketing communications, we may collect:

Email preferences
Newsletter subscriptions
Marketing interaction history

4. How We Collect Information

Information may be collected when you:

Create an account
Place an order
Contact us
Subscribe to newsletters
Complete forms
Participate in promotions
Browse our website

Certain information is collected automatically through cookies and analytics technologies.

5. Why We Collect Your Information

We process your information in order to:

Process and deliver orders
Provide customer support
Verify transactions
Prevent fraud
Improve our website
Respond to enquiries
Send order confirmations
Send delivery updates
Comply with legal obligations
Maintain business records
Send promotional communications where you have consented

6. Lawful Basis for Processing

We process personal information where:

You have provided consent.
Processing is necessary to fulfil a contract.
Processing is required by law.
Processing protects our legitimate business interests without overriding your rights.

7. Payment Information

Rare Thread does not store full credit or debit card details.

Payments are processed securely by trusted third-party payment providers who comply with industry security standards.

8. Cookies

We use cookies to:

Remember user preferences
Improve website functionality
Analyse website traffic
Enhance your shopping experience

You may disable cookies in your browser settings, although some features of the website may no longer function correctly.

9. Analytics

We may use analytics services such as Google Analytics to understand how visitors use our website.

Analytics services may collect:

Pages visited
Session duration
Device type
Geographic region
Browser information

This information is used solely to improve our website and customer experience.

10. Marketing Communications

Where you have opted in, we may send promotional emails regarding:

New products
Promotions
Discounts
Company news

You may unsubscribe at any time using the unsubscribe link contained in our emails or by contacting us directly.

11. Sharing Personal Information

We do not sell your personal information.

We may share information with trusted third parties including:

Courier companies
Payment providers
Website hosting providers
Email service providers
IT support providers
Legal or regulatory authorities where required by law

All service providers are expected to protect your information appropriately.

12. International Transfers

Some of our service providers may store or process information outside South Africa.

Where this occurs, we will take reasonable steps to ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place in accordance with POPIA.

13. Information Security

We implement reasonable technical and organisational safeguards to protect your information against:

Loss
Theft
Unauthorised access
Misuse
Disclosure
Alteration
Destruction

While no internet transmission can be guaranteed as completely secure, we continuously work to protect your information using industry-standard security measures.

14. Data Retention

We retain personal information only for as long as necessary to:

Fulfil the purposes outlined in this policy.
Comply with legal obligations.
Resolve disputes.
Enforce agreements.

When information is no longer required, it is securely deleted or anonymised.

15. Your Rights Under POPIA

You have the right to:

Access your personal information.
Request correction of inaccurate information.
Request deletion where legally permissible.
Object to certain processing.
Withdraw consent where processing is based on consent.
Lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator.

Requests may be submitted to us using the contact details below.

16. Children's Privacy

Our website is not directed at children under the age of 18.

We do not knowingly collect personal information from minors without the consent of a parent or legal guardian.

17. Third-Party Websites

Our website may contain links to external websites.

We are not responsible for the privacy practices or content of those websites. Users should review the privacy policies of any third-party websites they visit.

18. Changes to this Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time.

The latest version will always be published on this website together with the updated Effective Date.

Continued use of our website after changes have been published constitutes acceptance of the revised policy.

19. Contact Us

If you have any questions regarding this Privacy Policy or your personal information, please contact:

Rare Thread

Email: info@rarethread.online

Website: https://rarethread.online

20. Information Officer

In accordance with POPIA, the Information Officer for Rare Thread can be contacted via: