Privacy Policy

Privacy Policy Last Updated: April 2026

Welcome to Cookies & Koalas. We're committed to protecting your personal data and being transparent about how we use it. This policy explains what information we collect, why we collect it, and your rights under UK data protection law.

Cookies & Koalas is the data controller for your personal information. Our store is hosted by Shopify.

1. Information We Collect

When you visit or make a purchase from our website, we may collect:

  • Contact details — your name, email address, phone number, billing and shipping addresses
  • Payment information — payment card details processed securely via Shopify Payments. We do not store your full card details
  • Order information — items purchased, order history, and transaction details
  • Photos and images you provide — images you upload or send us to personalise your order
  • Device and usage information — your IP address, browser type, pages visited, and how you interact with our website
  • Communications — any messages you send us via email or contact forms

2. How We Use Your Information

We use your personal data to:

  • Process and fulfil your orders, including arranging delivery
  • Send you order confirmations and updates
  • Handle returns, refunds, and customer support queries
  • Detect and prevent fraud
  • Improve our website and services using anonymised analytics data
  • Show relevant advertisements via Google Ads

Photos and images you provide are used solely to produce your personalised order. We do not use your images for any other purpose, share them with third parties beyond what is necessary to fulfil your order, or retain them longer than necessary after your order is complete.

We will only process your data where we have a lawful basis to do so under UK GDPR:

  • Contract — to fulfil your order
  • Legal obligation — to comply with applicable law
  • Legitimate interests — to improve our services, prevent fraud, and run our business effectively

We will never sell your personal data.

3. Cookies and Analytics

We use cookies and similar technologies on our website. These help us:

  • Keep your shopping basket active during your visit
  • Understand how visitors use our site (via Google Analytics)
  • Measure the performance of our advertising (via Google Ads)

Google Analytics collects anonymised data about site usage. Google Ads may use cookies to show our advertisements to people who have visited our site. You can opt out of Google Analytics tracking at any time via tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout.

You can manage or disable cookies through your browser settings at any time.

4. Sharing Your Information

We only share your data with trusted third parties who help us operate our business:

  • Shopify — our store platform, which hosts and processes orders on our behalf
  • Shopify Payments — for secure payment processing
  • Royal Mail — to deliver your orders
  • Google — for website analytics (Google Analytics) and advertising (Google Ads)
  • Legal or regulatory authorities — where required by law

All third parties are required to handle your data securely and in accordance with UK data protection law.

5. Data Retention

We retain your personal data only for as long as necessary. Order and transaction records are kept for 7 years to comply with HMRC accounting requirements.

Photos and images provided for personalisation purposes are deleted once your order has been fulfilled and any return or dispute window has passed.

You may request deletion of your data at any time, subject to any legal obligations we have to retain it.

6. Your Rights

Under UK GDPR, you have the right to:

  • Access the personal data we hold about you
  • Correct any inaccuracies in your data
  • Request deletion of your data (where applicable)
  • Object to or restrict our processing of your data
  • Data portability — receive a copy of your data in a transferable format
  • Withdraw consent where we rely on consent to process your data

To exercise any of these rights, contact us at hello@cookiesandkoalas.co.uk. We will respond within one month as required by law.

You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) — the UK's data protection authority — at ico.org.uk or by calling 0303 123 1113.

7. Data Security

We take reasonable steps to protect your personal data from unauthorised access, loss, or misuse. Our store is hosted on Shopify, which maintains industry-standard security measures. However, no method of transmission over the internet is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

8. Changes to This Policy

We may update this policy from time to time. The latest version will always be available on our website, with the date updated at the top.

9. Contact Us

For any questions about this policy or how we handle your data:

Email: hello@cookiesandkoalas.co.uk Post: Cookies & Koalas, Unit 44 Boyton Hall Farm, Boyton Cross, Chelmsford, CM1 4LN