Privacy Policy

THE ARK - PRIVACY POLICY

Management of Personal Information

At The Ark (The Ark, our, us or we), we recognise the importance of your privacy and understand your concerns about the security of the Personal Information you provide to us.

The Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) in Australia contains the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs). The APPs detail how Personal Information may be collected, used, disclosed, stored and destroyed, and how an individual may gain access to or make complaints about the Personal Information held about them.

This Privacy Policy (Policy) details how The Ark collects, manages and processes Personal Information about you, whether you are a customer, a supplier, or a website visitor or other individual. By using our website, https://theark.com.au/ (Website) or by submitting your Personal Information to us, you acknowledge that you have read and understood, and agree to the use of your Personal Information in accordance with this Policy. We reserve the right to revise this Policy or any part of it from time to time. Please review the Policy periodically for changes.

Definitions

Personal Information is information or an opinion about an identified individual, or about an individual who is reasonably identifiable (Personal Information).

Sensitive Information, a sub-set of Personal Information, is information or an opinion about an individual’s racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, political association membership, religious beliefs or affiliations, philosophical beliefs, professional or trade association membership, trade union membership, sexual orientation or practices, or criminal record, and includes health information and genetic information (Sensitive Information).

What Personal Information we collect and hold

In our business, the collection of Personal Information in some instances is necessary or unavoidable. We collect the Personal Information we need to provide our services to you, sell our products to you, provide you with relevant consumer information, notify you of products and special offers that maybe of interest to you and for our general business operations.

The kinds of Personal Information we collect from you or about you depend on the transaction you have entered into with us, the products and services you have contracted us to provide, and the products and services you are interested in.

If you are a customer of The Ark, the kinds of Personal Information that we commonly collect and hold from you or about you include: your name, billing address, shipping address, contact phone numbers, email address, date of birth, bank account details, credit card details, and other information that may be requested from you in order for us to provide our products and services to you.

If you are a supplier of or vendor to The Ark, the kinds of Personal Information that we commonly collect and hold from you or about you include: your name, address, contact phone numbers, email address, business structure details (ABN, etc), bank account details, and other information that may be requested from you in order for us to engage with you or your business.

Cookies

When you browse our Website, contact us electronically, or engage with us on social media, we may also record geographical tagging, cookies, your IP address and statistical data from your activity. We may use your Personal Information to customise and improve your user experience on our Website and other social media platforms. By using our Website, you agree that we can record this information from your device and access them when you visit the Website in the future.

If you want to delete any cookies that are already on your computer or device, please refer to the help and support area on your relevant internet browser for instructions on how to locate the file or directory that stores cookies. Please note that by deleting cookies or disabling future cookies you may not be able to access certain areas or features of our Website, or experience the full functionality of our Website.

Our Website may also contain links to other websites of interest (eg, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, etc). However, once you have used these links to leave our Website, you should note that we do not have any control over those other website/s. Therefore, we cannot be responsible for the protection and privacy of any Personal Information which you provide whilst visiting such sites, and such sites are not governed by this Policy. You should exercise caution and look at the privacy statement applicable to the website in question.

How we collect and hold Personal Information

We aim to collect Personal Information only directly from you, unless it is unreasonable or impracticable for us to do so. For example, we collect Personal Information from you or about you:

from your interaction with us when you purchase products from us;
from your correspondence with us, including emails, letters and telephone calls;
when you participate in our events, contests, or promotions;
from subscribing to our email subscription services and newsletters for information about new collections, offers and events; and
from your activity on our Website.

In some instances, we may receive Personal Information about you from third parties, such as the other entities in The Ark’s business group, our payment gateway providers, and our postage and delivery partners.

You can be anonymous or use a pseudonym when dealing with us, unless:

the use of your true identity is a legal requirement (eg, to process your payment for products and services); or
it is impracticable for us to deal with you on such basis.

Why we collect, hold, use and disclose Personal Information

We collect, hold, use and disclose Personal Information from you or about you where it is reasonably necessary for us to carry out our business functions and activities. For example, we collect, hold, use and disclose your Personal Information as necessary to:

provide our products and services to you;
send our email subscription services and newsletters in respect of our new collections, offers, contests, promotions and events; and
assist with warranty and processing the return of products.

If we do not collect, hold, use or disclose your Personal Information, or if you choose not to provide certain Personal Information to us, or if you do not consent to our collection, holding, use or disclosure of your Personal Information, then we may not be able to provide you with the products or services that you or your organisation have requested us to provide.

We may collect Sensitive Information from you or about you where there is a legal requirement to do so, or where we are otherwise permitted by law. In all other situations, we will specifically seek your consent.

We also collect, hold, use and disclose your Personal Information for related purposes that you would reasonably expect, such as our administrative and accounting functions, fraud checks, payment processing, refunds and returns, providing you with information about other products and services offered by us, email subscription services, marketing and promotional newsletter communications, market research, event invitations, statistical collation and Website traffic analysis.

We will share your personal information amongst the entities in The Ark’s corporate group (including those that administer and support our business administration, marketing and newsletter functions). We will also share your personal information with our business affiliates who assist us with various aspects our the operation of our business activities and administrative functions (eg, IT contractors, payment gateway providers, marketing and mailing houses, etc). You can contact us for further detail about these types of entities and activities at any time.

If our business operations and assets are restructured, sold or merged with another organisation, your Personal Information will be disclosed and transferred as part of that restructure, sale or merger. Otherwise, we do not sell, share or trade your Personal Information more generally.

Where we wish to use or disclose your Personal Information for other purposes, we will do so in accordance with the requirements of the APPs (which may include notifying you, and seeking and obtaining your consent).

Where we use your Personal Information for marketing and promotional communications such as our email subscription services and newsletter communications, you can opt out at any time by notifying us. Opt out procedures are also included in our marketing communications.

We may also disclose your Personal Information to third parties (including government departments and enforcement bodies) where required or permitted by law.

How we hold and store Personal Information

Your Personal Information is held and stored on paper, by electronic means or both. We have physical, electronic and procedural safeguards in place for Personal Information and take reasonable steps to ensure that the Personal Information we hold about you is protected from misuse, interference, loss and unauthorised access, modification and disclosure. The measures we take include:

protecting Personal Information held electronically with firewalls and password access;
secure archiving of documentation; and
where we share with and disclose Personal Information to third parties, our contractual arrangements with those third parties contain specific privacy requirements.

Destruction and De-identification

We will retain your Personal Information whilst it is required for any of our business functions and activities, or for any other lawful purpose.

We will take reasonable steps, and we will use secure methods to destroy or to permanently de-identify your Personal Information when it is no longer required for any purpose for which the Personal Information may be used under this Policy and otherwise in accordance with the Privacy Act.

As an example, our destruction and de-identification methods may include:

Paper records being placed in security bins and shredded, or sent for secure destruction; or
Electronic records being deleted from all locations, to the best of our ability, or encrypted and/or placed beyond use.

Overseas disclosure

We do not disclose your Personal Information to overseas recipients.

Requests for access and correction

We have procedures in place for dealing with and responding to requests for access to, and correction of, the Personal Information held about you.

In most cases, we expect that we will be able to comply with your request. However, if we do not agree to provide you access or to correct the information as requested, we will give you written reasons why. For further information, please contact us.

To assist us to keep our records up-to-date, please notify us of any changes to your personal information.

Data Breaches

If we suspect that a data breach has occurred, we will undertake an assessment into the circumstances of the suspected breach within 30 days after the suspected breach has occurred. Where it is ascertained that a breach has actually occurred and where required by law, we will notify the Privacy Commissioner and affected individuals as soon as practicable after becoming aware that a data breach has occurred.

Complaints and Concerns

We have procedures in place for dealing with complaints and concerns about our practices in relation to the Privacy Act and the APPs. We will respond to your complaint in accordance with the relevant provisions of the APPs. For further information, please contact us.

Contact

The Ark
Privacy Officer
1357 High Street
MALVERN VIC 3144
Telephone: (03) 9912 2713
E-mail: hello@theark.com.au

The Ark group of businesses comprises The Ark Clothing Company Pty Ltd and Ark Clothing Investments Pty Ltd.