Privacy Policy

1. Who controls your data

MarketWaveStores is the data controller, operating from the United Republic of Tanzania and serving users in Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Zambia, Botswana, South Africa and beyond. For any privacy request, contact us.

2. What we collect

• Account details (name, email, phone, location, and profile information you provide).
• Shop, product, order, delivery, payment and review data.
• Activity data — product views, likes, shares, clicks, searches and engagement.
• Technical data — IP address, device/user-agent, cookies and audit logs of key actions.

3. How we use your data

• To operate the marketplace — accounts, listings, orders, delivery confirmation and payments.
• To provide analytics, benchmarking and business-intelligence features to shop owners.
• To keep the Platform safe (fraud prevention, moderation and audit trails).
• To communicate with you about your account, orders and (if you opt in) marketing.

5. Legal bases & your rights

We process data on the bases of your consent, performance of our contract with you, our legitimate interests in operating and improving the Platform, and compliance with law. Subject to applicable law, you may request access to, correction of, or deletion of your personal data, object to certain processing, or withdraw consent (which does not affect prior processing). We handle personal data in line with applicable data-protection laws in the countries we serve, including the Tanzania Personal Data Protection Act 2022, the Kenya Data Protection Act 2019, Uganda's Data Protection and Privacy Act 2019, Zambia's Data Protection Act 2021, Botswana's Data Protection Act, and South Africa's POPIA.

6. Sharing

We share data with shop owners (for their own shops), delivery agents and affiliates (as needed to fulfil orders and pay commissions), and service providers who help us run the Platform under confidentiality obligations. We may disclose data where required by law or to protect our rights and users' safety. We do not sell your personal contact details, and we do not publish them to the public beyond what a transaction requires.

7. Cross-border transfers

Because we operate across several countries and use cloud infrastructure, your data may be stored or processed outside your own country, including in Tanzania. By using the Platform you consent to such transfers, and we take reasonable steps to ensure your data remains protected consistent with this policy.

8. Cookies & tracking

We use cookies and similar technologies to keep you signed in, remember your region and theme, secure the Platform, and understand usage. You can control cookies through your browser; some features may not work without them.

9. Retention & deletion

To preserve data quality for analytics and model training, records are soft-deleted — hidden from users but retained internally. You may request account deletion; some records may be kept, in aggregated or de-identified form, as permitted or required by law and for legitimate business, legal and security purposes.

10. Children

The Platform is not intended for anyone under 18 (or the age of majority in their country). We do not knowingly collect data from children; if you believe a child has provided us data, contact us and we will remove it.

11. Your choices & security

You can update your profile, opt out of marketing emails, and toggle light/dark mode at any time. For data requests, contact us. We use reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect your data, but no system is perfectly secure — please keep your credentials safe. We may update this policy from time to time and will note the date above.