Terms of Service

Last Updated: June 14, 2021

These Terms of Use (“Terms”) set forth the terms and conditions under which you may use or visit our website located at ShopLocalRhodeIsland.com (the “Site”), which is operated by Visual Thrive LLC d/b/a Shop Local Rhode Island (“ShopLocalRhodeIsland,” “we” or “us”). We use the Site to provide centralized space for Rhode Island business owners (“Vendors”) to promote, list, and sell their goods and services to potential customers (“Customers”) (collectively, the “Services”).

BY REGISTERING, ACCESSING, OR USING OUR SITE OR SERVICES, YOU ARE AGREEING TO ABIDE BY THESE TERMS, AND THIS AGREEMENT TO OUR TERMS CONSTITUTES A LEGALLY BINDING CONTRACT BETWEEN YOU AND SHOPLOCALRHODEISLAND. If you do not agree to these Terms, do not register, access, or use our Services. If you wish to terminate this contract, you can do at any time so by closing your account and no longer accessing or using our Services.

ShopLocalRhodeIsland may revise and update these Terms at any time. Please review our Terms periodically for changes. Your continued use of the Services will mean you accept the revised Terms.

1. Code of Conduct

Code of Conduct for All Users

By using the Site and Services, all users agree not to use the Site to:

use the Services in a manner that would violate applicable law or the right (including intellectual property and privacy rights) of others;

post content that is false and misleading or uses the Services in a manner that is fraudulent or deceptive;

engage in any form of fraud;

harass, threaten, intimidate, impersonate, or attempt to impersonate, any other entity or person, falsify your contact or other information, misrepresent a relationship with any person or entity, including ShopLocalRhodeIsland, or otherwise attempt to mislead others as to the identity of the sender or the origin of a review or rating;

knowingly provide false, inaccurate, outdated, or incomplete information when registering for the Site and failing to maintain the truthfulness, accuracy, and completeness of such information;

fail to maintain the confidentiality of any password or other account information not generally available to others;

reproduce, duplicate, copy, modify, sell, re-sell, or exploit any Site content for any commercial, educational, or any other non-personal purpose or for any purpose unrelated to your business, without our express written consent;

attempt to gain unauthorized access to the Site, other user accounts, or other computer systems or networks connected to the Site and Services;

upload, post, email, or otherwise transmit any content that you do not have a right to transmit under any law or under contractual or fiduciary relationships (such as inside information, or proprietary and confidential information learned or disclosed as part of employment relationships or under nondisclosure agreements); and

upload, post, email, or otherwise transmit any material that contains software viruses, Trojan horses, worms, time bombs, spiders, cancelbots, or any other computer code, files, or programs designed to interrupt, destroy, or limit the functionality of any computer software or hardware or telecommunications equipment.

Additional Obligations for Vendors

By using the Site and Services, Vendors agree not to use the Site to:

promote or sell goods or services that are prohibited or highly regulated by applicable law or regulation, such as alcohol, tobacco, firearms, drugs, and hazardous materials;

promote or sell goods or services that promote hate or violence or otherwise may be considered morally objectionable or threatening to others;

infringe, misappropriate, or violate any third party’s patent, trademark, trade secret, copyright, or other proprietary rights of any party, including the rights of ShopLocalRhodeIsland;

upload, post, email, or otherwise transmit any unsolicited or unauthorized advertising, promotional materials, “junk mail,” “spam,” “chain letters,” “pyramid schemes,” or any other form of solicitation or content for any purposes not authorized by these Terms; and

take any action that would represent and warrant that you own or have the necessary permissions to upload any content for your business listing when you do not.

Additional Obligations for Customers

By using the Site and Services, Customers agree not to use the Site to provide or submit false or misleading comments to the detriment of Vendors.

ShopLocalRhodeIsland reserves the right to investigate and/or terminate your use of its Services if you have violated these Terms, misused the Services, or behaved in a way that ShopLocalRhodeIsland regards as inappropriate or unlawful, including actions or communications that occur on or off the Services.

2. Content Posted to Site

By posting any materials to our Site, you represent that you have all necessary rights to such materials and that you are not infringing or violating any third party’s rights by posting such materials. In addition, you grant ShopLocalRhodeIsland a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free, irrevocable, sub-licensable, and perpetual license to use, display, edit, modify, reproduce, distribute, store, and prepare derivative works to use it to provide the Services.

If you believe any material posted to our Site infringes your intellectual property rights, please contact us so we may take appropriate action.

3. Disputes with other Users

ShopLocalRhodeIsland’s Services provide a platform for Sellers to promote and sell their goods to Customers. ShopLocalRhodeIsland does not review Seller listings or endorse the Sellers who post to the Site. If you have a dispute with another user of our Services, we encourage you to contact that user to resolve the dispute directly.

Without limiting the foregoing, your correspondence or business dealings with or use of any service provided by third parties or Vendors found on or through the use of the Site, including payment for and delivery or fulfillment of related services, and any other terms, conditions, warranties, or representations associated with such dealings, are solely between you and such third party. You agree that ShopLocalRhodeIsland shall not be responsible or liable, directly or indirectly, for any loss or damage of any sort incurred as the result of any such dealings or as the result of the presence of such third parties or Vendor on the ShopLocalRhodeIsland Site.

You agree that ShopLocalRhodeIsland is not responsible for the behavior of its users and you release ShopLocalRhodeIsland from any and all liability for or relating to any interactions or dealings with another user.

4. Disclaimer of Information Provided by Vendors

All information provided for on the Site is for informational purposes only. ShopLocalRhodeIsland makes a good faith effort to keep content accurate and current but you understand that your access to and use of the Site and Services is at your own initiative and risk. It is your responsibility to take precautions to ensure that any information, materials, software, or data that you access, use, download, or otherwise obtain on or through the Site and Services are up-to-date, accurate, complete, reliable, and suitable to and appropriate for the purpose for which you may desire them.

5. Termination

We have the right, but not the obligation, to monitor our Site to determine compliance with these Terms and any other operating rules we have established and to satisfy any law, regulation, or authorized government request. We have the right in our sole discretion to remove any material submitted to or posted on our Site. We reserve the right to restrict, suspend, or terminate your account if you misuse our Services or if you violate these Terms.

Vendors Marketplace Membership Cancellation.

If we do not receive payment from Vendors relating to their “Best Value” or “Premium” monthly marketplace membership fee, you agree to pay all amounts due upon demand. Following any such non-payment, we may require you to provide a second valid credit card to the third-party processor before continuing to use the Site and Services. You authorize us to have the third-party processor charge any outstanding fees and other amounts due to us against the credit card provided. If we don’t receive such payment within 7 days following our notice of delinquent payment to you, your membership will be canceled.

Vendors are responsible for properly canceling their account. Vendors can cancel their marketplace membership at any time. If you cancel the Service before the end of your current paid up month, your cancellation will take effect immediately and you will not be charged again at the next month billing cycle. ShopLocalRhodeIsland does not refund or prorate monthly.

6. Vendors Marketplace Membership Subscription

Vendors can subscribe to three forms of marketplace memberships which are as follows (i) “Freemium”, (ii) “Best Value”, and (iii) “Premium”. Each marketplace membership showcases its own features as further specified in the registration form. The Service is made available on month-to-month basis. You will be billed monthly starting on the day of the month your account was initially created. Regardless of your billing cycle, there are no refunds or credits for partial months of service. Prices of all Services, including but not limited to monthly fees, are subject to change upon 14 days’ notice from us. Such notice may be provided at any time and shall be provided by updating this Agreement.

7. Payment Information

Some of our features of our Services require you to pay a fee. You must be 18 or older to make a purchase through our Site and you are responsible for payment of your order through the Sites at the time of ordering. You agree to pay these fees and any other charges incurred in connection with your username and password (including any applicable taxes) at the rates in effect when the charges were incurred. We process all charges automatically through a third-party payment processor. ShopLocalRhodeIsland does not, itself, collect credit card or bank account information from its users. We may change the fees and charges then in effect, or add new fees or charges, by giving you notice in advance. All fees and charges are nonrefundable, except in instances where we are unable or unwilling to provide the requested services.

8. Publicity

Vendors acknowledge and agree that ShopLocalRhodeIsland may publicly disclose and may use a Vendor’s name and/or logo in its online, printed, and other marketing and publicity materials to identify it as a member of the ShopLocalRhodeIsland community. If you or your organization prefers ShopLocalRhodeIsland not publicly disclose this information, please contact us.

9. ShopLocalRhodeIsland’s Intellectual Property Rights

The contents of this Site are protected by copyright, trademark, and other intellectual property law and may not be modified, reproduced, copied, or distributed without express written permission from ShopLocalRhodeIsland.

“ShopLocalRhodeIsland.com” and other graphics, logos, designs, page headers, button icons, scripts, and service names available on the Site are the intellectual property of ShopLocalRhodeIsland and may not be used, including as part of trademarks, business names, domain names, keyword advertisements, and/or email addresses, in any manner that is likely to cause confusion.

You should assume all material available on the Site is protect by copyright law. All Site material apart from any content submitted by other users, including but not limited to, text, graphics, logos, icons, images, audio and video clips, downloads, data compilations, and software are the exclusive property of ShopLocalRhodeIsland and/or its licensors and are protected by U.S. and international copyright laws.

10. Your Privacy and Security

Please know that ShopLocalRhodeIsland respects your privacy. A complete statement of our current privacy practices can be found here (“Privacy Notice”). Our Privacy Notice is expressly incorporated into these Terms by this reference.

Vendors are responsible for protecting Customers' personal information received or processed and must comply with all relevant requirements in accordance with the Privacy Notice. This includes applicable data protection and privacy laws that govern the ways in which Vendors can use ShopLocalRhodeIsland’s user information. Vendors must notify us immediately of any known or suspected breach of security or unauthorized use of your registration credentials for the Platform.

11. Governing Law and Dispute Resolution

Rhode Island law governs these Terms, as well as any claim, cause of action or dispute that might arise between you and ShopLocalRhodeIsland, without regard to conflict of law or choice of law rules. We make no representation that our Site is appropriate, legal, or available for use in locations outside of the United States. If you choose to access our Services, you agree to do so subject to the laws of Rhode Island and the United States.

12. Modifications and Interruption to Platform

You acknowledge and accept that ShopLocalRhodeIsland does not guarantee continuous, uninterrupted, or secure access to our Services and operation or use of our Services may be interfered with or adversely affected by numerous factors or circumstances outside of our control. ShopLocalRhodeIsland shall not be liable for any modifications, interruptions, outages, downtimes, or disruptions to our Services. ShopLocalRhodeIsland reserves the right to modify or discontinue our Services with or without notice.

13. Disclaimer of Warranties

THE SERVICES AND SITE ARE PROVIDED BY SHOPLOCALRHODEISLAND ON AN “AS IS” AND ON AN “AS AVAILABLE” BASIS, SHOPLOCALRHODEISLAND MAKES NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, REGARDING THE USE OR THE RESULTS OF THE SERVICES AND SITE IN TERMS OF ITS CORRECTNESS, ACCURACY, RELIABILITY, OR OTHERWISE. SHOPLOCALRHODEISLAND SHALL HAVE NO LIABILITY FOR ANY INTERRUPTIONS IN THE USE OF THE SITE OR SERVICES. TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, SHOPLOCALRHODEISLAND DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES WITH REGARD TO THE INFORMATION PROVIDED, INCLUDING THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OF IMPLIED WARRANTIES; THEREFORE, THE ABOVE-REFERENCED EXCLUSIONS MAY BE INAPPLICABLE TO SOME USERS.

14. Limitation of Liability

SHOPLOCALRHODEISLAND SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES WHATSOEVER, AND IN PARTICULAR SHOPLOCALRHODEISLAND SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY SPECIAL, INDIRECT, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, OR DAMAGES FOR LOST PROFITS, LOSS OF REVENUE, OR LOSS OF USE, ARISING OUT OF OR RELATED TO THE SITE, THE SERVICES, OR THE INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THE SITE OR THE SERVICES, WHETHER SUCH DAMAGES ARISE IN CONTRACT, NEGLIGENCE, TORT, UNDER STATUTE, IN EQUITY, AT LAW, OR OTHERWISE, EVEN IF SHOPLOCALRHODEISLAND HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW FOR THE LIMITATION OR EXCLUSION OF LIABILITY FOR INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, THEREFORE SOME OF THE ABOVE LIMITATIONS MAY BE INAPPLICABLE.

15. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify and hold ShopLocalRhodeIsland, its parents, subsidiaries, affiliates, officers, and employees, harmless from any claim or demand, including reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs, made by any third party due to or arising out of (i) your use or misuse of, or inability to use the Site and Services; (ii) your infringement; (iii) your violation of these Terms or your violation of any rights of a third party; (iv) your interactions with or conduct towards any other users; or (v) your violation of any applicable law, rules, or regulations. You agree that you will cooperate as reasonably requested by ShopLocalRhodeIsland in the defense of such claims. ShopLocalRhodeIsland reserves the right, at its own expense, to assume the exclusive defense and control of any matter otherwise subject to indemnification by users.

16. Third-Party Sites and Linked Content

Our Services may include links to other sites on the internet that are owned and operated by online merchants and other third parties. You acknowledge that ShopLocalRhodeIsland is not responsible for the availability of, or the content located on or through, any third-party site. You should contact the site administrator or webmaster for those third-party sites if you have any concerns regarding the content located on such sites. Use of third-party sites is subject to the terms of use and privacy policies of each site, and we are not responsible therein. ShopLocalRhodeIsland encourages you to review terms of use and privacy policies of third-party sites.

17. Miscellaneous

If any provision of these Terms is deemed unlawful, void, or unenforceable for any reason, the other provisions (and any partially-enforceable provision) shall not be affected and shall remain valid and enforceable to the fullest extent under law. You agree that these Terms and any other agreements referenced herein may be assigned by ShopLocalRhodeIsland, in our sole discretion, to a third party in the event of a merger or acquisition. These Terms shall apply in addition to, and shall not be superseded by, any other written agreement between us in relation to your access and use of the Site and Services.

Icon Usage

The Whimsical icon collection used on this website was created by Knockout Prezo from Noun Project.

18. Contact Us

If you have any questions or comments regarding these Terms, please contact us at hello@shoplocalrhodeisland.com.