Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy explains how MĀERENE, operated through FAM Enterprises (a sole proprietorship based in South Africa), collects, uses and protects your personal information.

For any privacy questions, please contact the Studio at studio@maerene.com.

MĀERENE may collect and process the following categories of personal information:

• Name
• Email address
• Mobile number
• Delivery details (recipient name, address, contact)
• Member and account identifiers
• Membership and journey information
• Preparation, allocation and order history
• Payment status, reference and amount information
• Correspondence history
• Dispatch and tracking information
• Acquisition or source information where captured
• Relevant timestamps and administrative records

MĀERENE does not receive or store readable account passwords. Authentication is handled through Base44, our platform provider.

MĀERENE does not receive or store full card numbers, CVV or personal online banking credentials. Payment is completed through the relevant external payment provider (such as SnapScan or iKhokha).

The following third-party services may be involved when you interact with MĀERENE:

• Base44 — used for application hosting, database, authentication, email and platform services, and built-in analytics.
• Google — may be involved where Google authentication is used.
• SnapScan / iKhokha — may process payment information when those providers are used.
• Google Fonts — currently loaded by the site for typography.

The current Base44 environment stores and processes application data in the United States.

Base44 platform-level analytics may collect aggregated visitor information such as visits, traffic source, approximate location, device, operating system, browser and visit duration.

MĀERENE does not currently install Google Analytics, Google Tag Manager, Meta Pixel, Hotjar, Microsoft Clarity, session recording or other advertising or behavioural tracking technology.

If non-essential advertising or analytics technology is introduced in future, the privacy and consent architecture will be reviewed first.

MĀERENE may use your information for purposes including:

• Providing membership and account services
• Managing preparations and allocations
• Processing and recording transactions
• Fulfilment and delivery
• Customer support
• Security and fraud prevention
• Statutory and business record keeping
• Optional marketing where permitted or consented
• Improving the MĀERENE service

Not every processing activity relies on your consent. Where consent is the basis, you may withdraw it at any time. Transactional and service correspondence necessary to administer your membership or a transaction remains operational regardless of marketing preference.

Information may be retained where reasonably required for transactions, accounting and tax records, fraud and security purposes, legal obligations and legitimate record keeping, even after account closure.

MĀERENE does not automatically delete legitimate transaction history.

You may request:

• Access to your personal information
• Correction of your personal information
• Deletion where applicable
• Objection or withdrawal of consent where applicable
• Account closure

To exercise any of these rights, please contact the Studio at studio@maerene.com.

Marketing and editorial communication is kept separate from transactional and service correspondence. Joining MĀERENE does not automatically subscribe you to marketing.

You may unsubscribe from marketing at any time. Unsubscribing from marketing does not affect transactional or service correspondence necessary to administer your membership or transactions.

MĀERENE's PAIA Manual provides information about how requests for access to records may be made under the Promotion of Access to Information Act.

For privacy questions or requests, please contact the Studio at studio@maerene.com.