Privacy Policy

Out of the Closet (we us, our) owns and operates the online clothing retail store www.otcvintageandretroclothing.com.au

Out of the Closet is committed to protecting the privacy and personal information of its customers. This Privacy Policy describes the practices and processes Out of the Closet has in place to properly manage and safeguard that information.

Privacy laws that apply to Out of the Closet

Out of the Closet is required to comply with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and is bound by the Australian Privacy Principles ('APPs') set out in that Act. The APPs establish minimum standards for the collection, use, disclosure and handling of personal information. They apply to personal information in any form, including electronic and digital form. The APPs can be accessed at the website of the office of the Australian Information Commissioner: www.privacy.gov.au.

Out of the Closet is also subject to other laws relating to the protection of personal information. Out of the Closet direct marketing activities must also comply with the Do Not Call Register Act 2006 (Cth) and the Spam Act 2010 (Cth).

In this Privacy Policy, unless the context otherwise requires:

  • 'Privacy Law' refers to any legislative or other legal requirement that applies to Out of the Closet collection, use, disclosure or handling of personal information.

  • 'Personal information' means information or an opinion about an identified individual or an individual who is reasonably identifiable, whether the information or opinion is true or not and whether the information or opinion is recorded in material form or not. Personal information includes sensitive information.

  • 'Sensitive information' means personal information about an individual's racial or ethnic origin, political opinions or memberships, religious beliefs or affiliations, philosophical beliefs, professional or trade association/union memberships, sexual preferences and practices or criminal record.

Why does Out of the Closet collect personal information?

Out of the Closet collects personal information in order to:

  • manage and administer the products and services we provide, including for billing and credit control purposes;

  • inform customers about changes and improvements in Out of the Closet products and services;

  • market Out of the Closet products and services to current and prospective customers;

  • market third party products and services to current and prospective customers; and

  • comply with our legal obligations.

Out of the Closet needs to be able to collect personal information for most of its business activities, although the information we require depends on the particular circumstances. If we are unable to collect the personal information we need, we may be unable to meet the expectations of our customers or provide the products and services they wish to receive.

Whose personal information does Out of the Closet collect?

Out of the Closet collects or holds personal information about individuals who are:

  • Prospective customers. This includes people we think may be interested in our products and services as well as people who have expressed interest in obtaining or learning more about those products and services.

  • Current customers. This includes people who purchase Out of the Closet products or services.

  • Past customers. These are people who have purchased Out of the Closet products or services.

Out of the Closet may treat current and past customers as prospective customers for other Out of the Closet products and services.

Out of the Closet may collect personal information about associates of its customers, such as family members, employees or agents. For example, Out of the Closet may collect personal information about nominated or authorised representatives, the holder of a credit card that is used to pay a customers account or the nominated contact on an account.

Out of the Closet may in rare circumstances collect personal information from people who are under the age of 18. If Out of the Closet does this, Out of the Closet may also collect personal information about the parent or guardian of that person.

Can you deal with Out of the Closet without identifying yourself?

In some limited situations customers and other individuals may be able to deal with Out of the Closet anonymously or using a pseudonym. For example, if you make a general inquiry to one of our call centers, or want to make a complaint or log a service fault unless the inquiry or complaint relates to a particular account.

However, if you do not wish to be identified we may not be able to provide the information or assistance you require.

What personal information does Out of the Closet usually collect?

Out of the Closet collects a wide range of personal information about its customers, but the type and amount of information collected depends on the particular business context. However, Out of the Closet seeks at all times to ensure that it only collects the personal information that is necessary for the purposes of its business activities.

Out of the Closet needs to collect basic identifying and contact information for all customers, including prospective customers. This will usually include name, email address, telephone number(s) and delivery address.

Out of the Closet also collects information about purchasing patterns, consumer preferences and attitudes from prospective and current customers for marketing purposes, including to analyze markets, develop marketing strategies and to identify and develop products and services that may be of interest to its customers.

When you become an Out of the Closet customer, Out of the Closet collects a range of other information that that it needs to assess your application and manage your account(s).

This includes:

  • Financial and credit information, including bank account and credit card information. We need this information to process your order.

We also collect information about the way our customers use Out of the Closet products and services. This includes information about:

  • responses to offers made and/or promotions run by Out of the Closet or its affiliates; and

  • inquiries and complaints; and

  • your body measurements if submitted.

We collect information about our employees and prospective employees for the purpose of making employment decisions and managing our staff. We also collect information about suppliers, service providers, agents and affiliates, and their staff, for the purposes of conducting our day-to-day business activities.

How does Out of the Closet collect personal information?

We collect personal information by various means and via various media, depending on the particular business context.

We collect information about prospective customers both directly and via our agents, service providers and affiliates. We may collect this information:

  • through Out of the Closet websites, or websites operated by Out of the Closet affiliates;

  • through our call centers;

  • through social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook; and

  • through the purchase of marketing lists, databases and data aggregation services.

When you apply to become an Out of the Closet customer, we will ask you to consent to us collecting information from particular third parties.

We will only collect personal information from those parties if you consent. If you do not consent, we may not be able to provide the service or product you require. We are authorized to collect some personal information from third parties under Privacy Law.

Out of the Closet receives unsolicited personal information from time to time. In accordance with its obligations under Privacy Law, Out of the Closet will decide whether it would have been permitted to solicit and collect that information and if it would not have been, will destroy or de-identify the information (provided it is lawful to do so).

What information will Out of the Closet give you when it collects personal information?

Out of the Closet is required by Privacy Law to take reasonable steps to ensure that you are made aware of certain information when it collects personal information about you. For example, we are required to:

  • make sure you are aware that we have collected the information (if we collect it from a third party without your knowledge);

  • identify any law that authorizes or requires collection of the information;

  • let you know the purposes for which we collect the information, the entities that the information is likely to be disclosed to and whether the information will be transferred outside Australia; and

  • tell you how to access our Privacy Policy and complaint handling procedures.

This Privacy Policy sets out this information in general terms. However, where we collect personal information in relation to a particular product or service, and the information we are required to provide is not likely to be obvious from the circumstances, we usually provide the required information in a 'collection statement'. The way we do this will depend on how you are dealing with us. For example:

  • When personal information is collected via the Out of the Closet website or any affiliate website that Out of the Closet may advertise on, a statement is displayed or a link provided to a statement that sets out the information we are required to provide.

  • A statement containing the required information is printed on the sign-up page of most of the standard forms we use to collect personal information.

  • When you deal with us on the telephone, this information is given to you by the operator or via a recorded message.

If we collect personal information about you from a third party, we take reasonable steps to ensure you receive the information we are required to provide. However, we may do this by requiring the third party to provide the information, rather than us providing the information to you directly.

We may also include information about our collection of personal information in customer account statements, notices and other documents we give to our customers.

Out of the Closet use and disclosure of personal information:

Where Out of the Closet collects personal information for a particular purpose, it may use and disclose the information for that purpose or another purpose that is related to that purpose (or that is directly related to that purpose in the case of sensitive information). For example:

  • Personal information collected from you for the purpose of establishing or managing an account may be used and disclosed for related purposes such as identity verification, supplying and servicing a product, billing and collection in relation to the product and investigating and rectifying complaints or faults.

  • Personal information collected for the purpose of establishing or managing an account may also be used for the purpose marketing of other Out of the Closet products and services. Out of the Closet may contact prospective, current or past customers about products and services (including products not related to a product or service previously supplied).

Out of the Closet may use personal information about prospective, current and past customers for the purpose of direct marketing of Out of the Closet products and services or those of other organizations. Direct marketing communications may be sent via post, e-mail, telephone, door to door canvassing, social media sites or other means. However:

  • Out of the Closet will not use sensitive information for direct marketing purposes without your consent.

  • Unless you have provided consent, or we think it is impracticable to obtain your consent, Out of the Closet will not use your personal information for direct marketing purposes where we have obtained the personal information from a third party, or we have collected it directly from you but believe that you would not reasonably expect the information to be used for direct marketing.

  • Whenever we communicate with you for direct marketing purposes, we will give you the opportunity to opt out of receiving further direct marketing communications from Out of the Closet.

  • You may opt out of receiving direct marketing communications from Out of the Closet at any time by contacting us at support@otcvintageandretroclothing.com.au.

  • If we use your personal information to facilitate direct marketing by other organizations on behalf of other organizations, you can ask us to provide the source of the information by contacting us at support@otcvintageandretroclothing.com.au

Personal information about Out of the Closet staff, agents, affiliates and service providers is used and may be disclosed for the purpose of managing the relationship with the staff member or other entity.

Personal information may also be disclosed to third party agents and service providers who Out of the Closet engages to assist in the provision of products and services. These include:

  • Delivery agents and courier service providers;

  • sales agents and representatives;

  • organisations that process banking transactions;

  • organisations that process debt collection;

  • printers, mail distributors, couriers and dispatch centers;

  • call centers operated by entities outside Out of the Closet;

  • IT service providers and data managers;

  • legal, accounting, insurance and business advisory consultants, services.

Out of the Closet may also disclose personal information without consent as authorized by privacy law for a range of other purposes, including:

  • where necessary to prevent or lessen a serious threat to health or safety;

  • for law enforcement or crime prevention purposes;

  • for the investigation of unlawful activity;

  • for location of missing persons; and

  • for use in legal proceedings or dispute resolution.

In situations other than those described above, Out of the Closet will not disclose personal information without the customer’s consent (although consent may be implied).

Is personal information disclosed outside Australia?

Out of the Closet discloses some personal information to persons or organizations that are outside Australia.

  • Out of the Closet employs a 3rd party tailoring company in Thailand. They are provided with your name and body measurements which are used to create your garments.

How does Out of the Closet protect your personal information?

Out of the Closet recognises the importance of protecting your personal information and of ensuring that it is complete, accurate, up-to-date and relevant.

When you call Out of the Closet, we check the details we hold about you are correct and to update them if required.

While some of the personal information we collect is held in hardcopy form, most personal information is stored in electronic databases. We have extensive processes in place to ensure that our information systems and files are kept secure from unauthorised access and interference. These include:

  • System access is controlled by logins and different security levels.

  • Our employees undergo privacy and information security training on induction and are required to sign acknowledgements of their obligations in relation information security and appropriate use of our IT systems.

Can you access or correct personal information Out of the Closet holds about you?

You have a right to access personal information we hold about you. If your request is particularly complex or requires detailed searching of our records, there may be a cost to you in order for us to provide you with this information. If you believe there are errors in the information we hold about you, you have a right to ask us to correct the information.

However, we are not required to provide access where we believe doing so would:

  • prejudice law enforcement or crime prevention activities;

  • pose a serious threat to health or safety;

  • have an unreasonable impact on the privacy of other individuals;

  • prejudice Out of the Closet in legal proceedings or negotiations with you;

  • reveal information connected with a commercially sensitive decision making process; or

  • be contrary to law.

If you wish to have access to information Out of the Closet holds about you, you should contact Out of the Closet Customer Service.

Dealing with Out of the Closet on-line

This Privacy Policy also applies to personal information that you email to us, provide by using our website or provide via social media sites.

We store the Internet Protocol (IP) address of your computer when you visit our site. This information is used only to create broad demographic summaries of where our users come from. Our use of these IP addresses, however, does not go so far as to identify the actual users of the site.

We collect personal information about the other websites that are visited by computers that are used to visit our site. This information may be aggregated to provide us with information about the types of webpages and websites, or particular webpages and websites, visited by computers that use our site.

Our website may use cookies and web-beacons. While cookies and web beacons can be used to statistically monitor and analyse the use of our site and to identify information about the computer used to visit our site, we do not use them for that purpose and will not attempt to use them to identify or target individual visitors to our website.

Note that this privacy policy does not apply to, and Out of the Closet is not responsible for, the use of, or the protection of information provided to, other websites linked to this website.