Seller Policies & Terms of Use

Last updated: 14-Sep-2026 · Version: 1.02

Index

Legal Recognition
Definitions
Acceptance & Scope
Role of the Platform
Your Eligibility & Account
Verification & Licences
Your Obligations as a Seller
Your Content & Licence to Homakes
Intellectual Property
Personal Data & Your Role as Data Fiduciary
Platform Charges & Settlement
Taxes
Your Representations & Warranties
Suspension, Termination & Exit
Disclaimer & Limitation of Liability
Indemnity
Force Majeure
Grievance Redressal & Dispute Resolution
Changes to These Terms
General

1. Legal Recognition

This document is an electronic record under the Information Technology Act, 2000, and the rules made thereunder, as applicable, including the amended provisions relating to electronic records in various statutes. It is published in accordance with Rule 3(1) of the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 and the Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020, which require the publication of the rules, regulations, privacy policy and terms of use governing access to and use of the Homakes platform.

It is generated by a computer system and does not require a physical or digital signature to be legally valid.

By registering as a Partner, listing a product, or accepting an order on Homakes, you signify your acceptance of these Terms and the documents referred to in Section 3, and enter into a legally binding agreement with Homakes Ventures LLP.

2. Definitions

Term	Meaning
Platform	The Homakes website, Partner app, customer app and related services
Homakes / we / us	Homakes Ventures LLP
Seller / you	Any person or entity approved to list and sell on the Platform - home chefs, food product makers, artisans, crafts makers, home & body care makers
Customer	Any person who purchases through the Platform
Delivery Partner	A rider employed or engaged by Homakes, or a third-party logistics provider appointed by Homakes, who collects from you and delivers to the Customer
Module	Eat Fresh, Food Products, Crafts & Decors, or Home & Body Care
Listing	A product or service you publish on the Platform
Platform Charges	Homakes' commission and applicable service fees, as set out in the Seller Policies
Seller Policies	The operational rulebook published on the Seller Policies tab

3. Acceptance & Scope

By registering as a Seller/Partner, listing a product, or accepting an order, you agree to be bound by these Terms.
These Terms must be read together with the documents below. Each is incorporated by reference and is equally binding:

Document	Covers
Seller Policies	How you operate - what a Seller/Partner can sell, listing and photo rules, labelling, packing, dispatch, charges, payouts, conduct, performance
Privacy Policy	How Homakes collects and handles personal data
Notice & Takedown Policy	How to report infringing or unlawful content, and how Homakes acts on such reports
Shipping Policy	Delivery timelines, serviceability and failed deliveries
Refund & Cancellation Policy	Customer-side refund, return and cancellation rules

If Seller/Partner do not agree, Seller/Partner must stop using the Platform and not register or transact.
Continued use after any amendment is deemed acceptance of the current version.
Where a Seller Policy conflicts with these Terms, these Terms prevail on legal and contractual matters; the Seller Policies prevail on operational and procedural matters.

4. Role of the Platform

Homakes operates strictly as an intermediary marketplace under Indian law. We provide technology, payment collection, order management, customer support and logistics.
Homakes does not cook, make, manufacture, own, stock or sell any product listed on the Platform. Every product is made and sold by you, as an independent Seller.
At no point does Homakes take possession of your products, nor hold any right, title or interest in them. Collection by a Delivery Partner is a transport service, not a transfer of ownership.
The contract of sale is strictly bipartite - between you and the Customer. Homakes is not a party to it.
Delivery Partners are engaged by Homakes, not by you. Your obligation ends when you hand over a correctly packed order; the delivery relationship is between Homakes and the Delivery Partner.
Homakes reserves the right, but assumes no obligation, to monitor, review, remove or edit listings and content on the Platform. Exercising that right does not make Homakes responsible for content you post, which remains solely your responsibility.
Homakes gives no warranty about the freshness, quality, safety, authenticity or legality of your products. That responsibility rests entirely with you.
Homakes acts as a limited payment collection agent on your behalf. Collecting payment from a Customer does not make Homakes the seller of the product. Payment made by a Customer to Homakes, or to a Delivery Partner collecting cash on delivery, discharges that Customer's obligation to you; you must then look to Homakes for settlement under Section 11, and not to the Customer.
Homakes does not guarantee any volume of orders, visibility, ranking or income.
Homakes may assist in resolving disputes through its grievance system, but does so as a facilitator, not as a party or guarantor.

5. Your Eligibility & Account

You must be at least 18 years old and competent to contract under the Indian Contract Act, 1872. Persons classified as incompetent to contract, including minors and undischarged insolvents, may not register.
You register as an individual or sole proprietor, in your own name, using your own Aadhaar and PAN.
You must make or prepare the products yourself, at the premises you register. Household members may help; anyone outside your household must be declared as a production partner (Section 2). Homakes is not a reseller platform.
Homakes does not currently onboard companies, LLPs, partnerships, societies, trusts or FPOs. If you run a self-help group or a community unit and want to sell on Homakes, contact us before applying - we will tell you whether we can onboard you yet.
One account per person. Duplicate accounts require our written permission.
You may not register if you have previously been suspended or terminated by Homakes, or register on behalf of someone who has.
All information you submit must be true, complete and current. You must update it promptly when it changes.
You are solely responsible for the confidentiality of your login credentials, password and OTPs, and for all activity on your account. Homakes will never ask you for an OTP, PIN or password. Report suspected misuse immediately.
Homakes may approve, reject or pause a Partner account at its discretion. Suspension or termination of an existing account follows Section 14.

6. Verification & Licences

Registration is subject to verification. You agree to submit identity, address, financial and premises documents as required, and to resubmit them on request.
You must hold and maintain all licences and registrations required by law for what you sell:
- FSSAI registration or licence - mandatory for anyone selling food, whether freshly cooked or packaged. Your FSSAI address must match the premises where you actually cook or prepare.
- Cosmetic manufacturing licence (Cosmetics Rules, 2020) - required for soaps, creams, oils, balms and similar personal care products. An AYUSH licence is required for Ayurvedic or herbal preparations.
- BIS certification - required for toys intended for children under 14, unless you hold a valid artisan or GI exemption (Seller Policies, Section 4).
GST is optional below the registration threshold. You must register for GST once your turnover crosses the threshold, or if you sell outside your own state. See Seller Policies, Section 15.
Keeping licences valid and current is your obligation. Listings are automatically suspended on expiry. Selling without a required licence is a material breach of these Terms.
Changes to bank details, premises address, GST or FSSAI details trigger re-verification and may pause settlement until completed.
Submitting false, forged or altered documents is grounds for immediate permanent termination and may be reported to the authorities.

The specific document list is in Seller Policies, Section 2.

7. Your Obligations as a Seller

You agree to:

List only products you are legally permitted to sell and which comply with the Seller Policies
Describe your products truthfully, and not in a manner that misleads a Customer about condition, contents, origin, quantity or shelf life
Maintain hygienic and safe preparation, handling and storage conditions
Honour your published prices, prep times, capacity and dispatch commitments
Fulfil accepted orders and provide prompt, courteous customer service
Make or prepare every item you list yourself, at your registered premises, and declare any production partner outside your household
Label and pack every item as the law requires, including MRP, net quantity, ingredients, allergens and licence numbers where applicable
Comply with all applicable law, including the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, the Legal Metrology Act, 2009, the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 and the Cosmetics Rules, 2020, the Toys (Quality Control) Order, 2020, the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, the Information Technology Act, 2000, the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 and tax legislation
Cooperate with audits, sample requests, premises inspections and investigations

You agree not to:

Resell goods you did not make, cook or craft, or dispatch from a supplier's address
Engage in fee avoidance - diverting a Customer off-platform, taking direct payment, inflating shipping to disguise price, or splitting orders to reduce Platform Charges
Increase the price of an item after an order has been confirmed
Create duplicate accounts, or create multiple listings for the same product to occupy more search results
Manipulate clicks, carts, stock, orders, reviews or search ranking, or artificially inflate traffic through bots or paid clicks
Allow any other person to act on your behalf in a way that breaches these Terms or the Seller Policies - you remain responsible for your account
Coordinate pricing with other Sellers
Interfere with, disparage or sabotage another Seller's business, or order from your own listings
Harass, threaten, stalk or expose the personal information of any Customer, Seller, Delivery Partner or member of Homakes staff
Upload content that is false, misleading, obscene, defamatory, harassing, discriminatory, communal, casteist, or infringing
Misuse Customer personal data, or use it for marketing, mailing lists or any purpose beyond fulfilling the order
Attempt to hack, scrape, reverse-engineer, probe or disrupt the Platform or its security
Use Homakes' name, logo, content or trademarks without written permission, or issue your own gift cards or vouchers

8. Your Content & Licence to Homakes

You retain ownership of the photographs, descriptions, designs and other content you upload ("Seller/Partner Content").
You grant Homakes a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free licence to host, reproduce, display, resize or reformat, distribute and promote Seller Content - on the Platform, in advertising, on social media and in marketing materials.
This licence extends to your store name, your own name and photographs of you and your workspace where you have supplied them for your profile or for a feature, story or campaign.
This licence runs for as long as your listings are live, plus a reasonable period afterwards for archival records and for campaigns already published. It is not perpetual and not irrevocable: on termination, Homakes will stop using your Seller Content in new marketing within a reasonable period, and you may ask us to do so sooner.
Homakes may not sub-licence your Seller Content to a third party for that third party's own commercial use without your consent. Use by Homakes' own service providers (hosting, advertising platforms) to deliver the Services is permitted.
You warrant that you own or are licensed to use all Seller Content and that it infringes no third-party rights, and that you hold any consent required from a person appearing in it.
Where Seller Content includes a design generated or assisted by an AI tool, you must disclose that in your listing (Seller Policies, Section 2).
Homakes may remove or edit Seller Content that breaches these Terms, the Seller Policies or applicable law, without prior notice.
Homakes is an intermediary with respect to Seller Content and accepts no liability for it.

9. Intellectual Property

All Platform content - software, design, interfaces, graphics, the Homakes name, logo, tagline and trademarks - is the property of Homakes Ventures LLP or its licensors. You may not copy, reproduce, distribute or create derivative works from it without written permission.
You must not use copyrighted images, trademarked names, brand logos, licensed characters, film, television or music references, sports team marks, celebrity names or likenesses, or another Seller's photos or descriptions. This applies to your products, your listings, your store name and your packaging alike.
Claiming a certification you do not hold - GI tag, Handloom Mark, Craft Mark, India Organic, Jaivik Bharat, BIS or any award - is prohibited, and is treated as an infringement as well as a misleading claim.
Any infringement claim arising from your listings is your sole liability. Homakes acts as an intermediary under the Information Technology Act, 2000 and will remove infringing content on receiving a valid notice. Repeat infringers may be suspended or permanently removed.
To report infringement of your own work, email contact@homakes.com with the infringing listing link, your own listing or work, and proof of ownership. Homakes will acknowledge within 48 hours and act within the timelines set by the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines) Rules, 2021.
If your listing is removed on an infringement notice and you believe the notice was wrong, you may write to contact@homakes.com with your grounds, and Homakes will review the removal.

10. Personal Data & Your Role as Data Fiduciary

You will receive Customer personal data (name, delivery address, phone number) solely to fulfil that order.
To the extent you determine how and why you process that data, you act as an independent Data Fiduciary under the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, and must comply with it and all applicable privacy law.
You may not store beyond need, resell, share, publish, or use Customer data for marketing, mailing lists, or any purpose other than fulfilling the order. Delete it once the order and its return window have closed.
You must take reasonable security safeguards to protect Customer data in your possession, and must notify Homakes at contact@homakes.com immediately on becoming aware of any breach, loss or unauthorised disclosure.
Where a Data Principal exercises their rights under the DPDP Act - access, correction, completion, updating, erasure, or grievance - and contacts you directly, you must action the request or forward it to contact@homakes.com within 7 days. You may not ignore such a request.
Unauthorised disclosure - deliberate, negligent or through a breach on your side - is your responsibility.
You will indemnify Homakes for any fine, penalty, claim, proceeding or expense Homakes incurs arising from your handling of Customer personal data. This applies whether you acted as an independent Data Fiduciary or whether you and Homakes are found to be joint Data Fiduciaries in respect of that data.
Homakes' own handling of your data is governed by the Homakes Privacy Policy.

11. Platform Charges & Settlement

You set your own prices. Homakes does not fix or cap them, though it may offer non-binding pricing guidance.
Homakes deducts a Platform Charge from each order. You earn up to [X]% of sales after that charge; your exact share depends on your weekly order volume and your consistency in meeting quality and timing standards. Rates are set out in Seller Policies, Section 13 and shown in your Partner Dashboard.
Raw materials, ingredients, packaging and your own equipment are your cost. Homakes provides the platform, delivery and logistics, payment collection, marketing and customer support.
Homakes may introduce you to vendors for raw materials, ingredients and packaging. Any such purchase is a separate contract between you and that vendor. Homakes is not a party to it, earns nothing from it, and gives no warranty as to the quality, price, safety or fitness of anything you buy from an introduced vendor.
Settlement is made weekly, typically every Wednesday, to your registered bank account, after deducting Platform Charges, applicable taxes, seller-funded discounts, logistics recoveries and any penalties.
Refunds arising from Seller error - wrong item, missing item, verified quality failure, packaging failure - are deducted from your payout for that cycle.
Homakes may withhold settlement during a fraud investigation, an open dispute, or where your KYC, bank, GST or FSSAI details are invalid, expired or unverified.
Settlement is only to your own registered bank account. Third-party accounts are not permitted.
Any settlement dispute must be raised within 30 days of the statement date.
Homakes will give at least 15 days' notice before changing Platform Charges.

12. Taxes

You are solely responsible for charging the correct GST, providing correct HSN codes, filing your own returns, and paying your own income tax.
You must furnish a valid PAN and Aadhaar, and keep your details current. Failure to furnish PAN attracts TDS at the higher rate prescribed under the Income Tax Act.
Homakes will collect Tax Collected at Source (TCS) under Section 52 of the CGST Act and deduct TDS under Section 194-O of the Income Tax Act, at the rates prevailing from time to time, and deposit them with the government.
Homakes will issue the corresponding TCS/TDS statements for your filings. It is your responsibility to claim the credit in your own returns within the time the law allows.
Homakes has no liability for your non-registration, non-filing, misclassification, or any resulting demand, interest or penalty.
Sellers who are not GST-registered and operate on a GST Enrolment Number are restricted to intra-state sales only, and are responsible for staying within that limit. Sellers who have declared that they sell only GST-exempt goods are responsible for that classification being correct.
You must maintain your own books of account and retain invoices and records for the period required by law. If a tax authority makes an enquiry about your sales on Homakes, you agree to cooperate and to provide what is asked.

Practical guidance is in Seller Policies, Section 15.

13. Your Representations & Warranties

You represent and warrant, on a continuing basis, that:

You have full legal capacity and authority to enter into this agreement
You are at least 18 years old, and are registering in your own name
You personally make, cook, craft or finish every item you list, at the premises you have registered, and have declared any production partner outside your household
You hold every licence, registration and permit required for your products, and each is valid and current
Your listings, photographs, ingredients, weights, shelf life and claims are accurate and not misleading, and your packs carry every declaration the law requires
Your products are safe, fit for their stated purpose, and comply with all applicable Indian law
Your Seller Content infringes no third-party rights, and you hold any consent required from a person appearing in it
You will not sell any prohibited or restricted item listed in the Seller Policies
All documents and information you submit are genuine and current, and you will update them promptly when they change
You will handle Customer personal data only as permitted under Section 10
You are not barred from selling on Homakes by a previous suspension or termination, and are not registering on behalf of anyone who is

14. Suspension, Termination & Exit

By Homakes. We may suspend, restrict or terminate your account, remove listings, withhold payouts, or take legal action if you:

breach these Terms, the Seller Policies, or any applicable law
list a prohibited, restricted or unlicensed item
resell goods you did not make, or dispatch from a supplier's address
allow a required licence or KYC record to lapse, or submit false, forged or altered documents
persistently fail the performance standards in Seller Policies, Section 20
engage in fraud, fee avoidance, data misuse or review manipulation
cause a verified safety or hygiene incident, or a food safety risk
harass, threaten or abuse a Customer, another Seller, a Delivery Partner or Homakes staff
stop taking orders or remain unavailable for two days or more without informing Homakes
take payment directly from a Customer, or divert a Customer off the Platform

Where a breach is not serious and is capable of being fixed, Homakes will give written notice setting out the issue and a reasonable period to correct it before suspending or terminating. Serious breaches - fraud, prohibited items, unlicensed food, data misuse, harassment, or a safety risk - may result in immediate suspension or termination without notice.

On suspension or termination: your listings go offline; you must complete or cancel open orders; payouts are held until all open orders, returns and disputes close; outstanding dues are set off against your balance.

Your right to be heard. If your account is suspended or terminated, you may write to contact@homakes.com within 15 days setting out your grounds, and Homakes will review the decision and respond.

Ending the agreement. Either party may end this agreement by giving 30 days' written notice. You must complete all open orders first. Final settlement is released after the last applicable return window closes.

Validity. Where you have signed a separate Homakes Partner Agreement, that agreement is valid for 12 months from signing and auto-renews unless terminated. It supplements these Terms; where the two differ on a commercial term, the signed agreement prevails for that term.

Account and data deletion: email contact@homakes.com from your registered email with your name, mobile number and Partner ID. Processed within 7 working days. Transaction and tax records are retained for the period required by law.

Survival. Sections 8, 9, 10, 12, 15, 16, 18 and 20 survive termination.

15. Disclaimer & Limitation of Liability

The Platform is provided "as is" and "as available", without warranties of any kind, express or implied. Homakes does not warrant uninterrupted or error-free availability and may withdraw, suspend or modify any part of the Platform without notice.
Homakes gives no warranty as to sales volume, order flow, income or business outcome. Nothing on the Platform, in our marketing, or in any training or guidance we provide is a guarantee that you will receive orders or earn any particular amount.
Homakes is not liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, punitive or exemplary damages, or for loss of profit, revenue, goodwill, data or business opportunity, arising from your use of the Platform.
Homakes is not liable for: acts or omissions of Customers or other Sellers; delivery delays, damage or theft by logistics partners; payment gateway or banking failures; platform downtime; the goods or conduct of any vendor we introduce you to; or loss caused by your own breach.
To the maximum extent permitted by law, Homakes' total aggregate liability to you for any claim shall not exceed the greater of (a) ₹10,000, or (b) the total Platform Charges actually received from you in the three (3) months preceding the event giving rise to the claim.
Any claim against Homakes arising from these Terms must be brought within one (1) year of the event giving rise to it.
Nothing in this section excludes liability that cannot be excluded under Indian law, including liability for fraud, for death or personal injury caused by negligence, or any liability that may not lawfully be limited under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019.

16. Indemnity

You agree to indemnify, defend and hold harmless Homakes Ventures LLP, its partners, officers, employees, agents and affiliates from any claim, demand, loss, liability, fine, penalty, proceeding or expense (including reasonable legal fees) arising from or connected with:

your products, their quality, safety, contents, labelling or legality
any injury, illness, allergic reaction or adverse effect caused by your products
your listings, photographs, descriptions or claims
your breach of these Terms, the Seller Policies or any applicable law
your infringement of any third party's intellectual property rights
your handling or misuse of Customer personal data
any tax demand, interest or penalty arising from your non-compliance
any action by a regulatory or licensing authority relating to your products or premises, including FSSAI, the State Drug Control authority, Legal Metrology, BIS or a local authority
your conduct towards any Customer, Seller, Delivery Partner or member of Homakes staff
any act or omission of a person you allowed to use your account, or of a production partner working on your products

Homakes will notify you of any claim covered by this indemnity, and you will cooperate in its defence. Homakes may take conduct of its own defence where it reasonably considers it necessary, and you will not settle any claim in a way that admits liability on Homakes' behalf without our written consent.

This indemnity survives termination of this agreement.

17. Force Majeure

Neither party is liable for any failure or delay in performance caused by an event beyond its reasonable control - including natural disaster, flood, earthquake, fire, epidemic or pandemic, war, civil unrest, strike, riot, bandh or hartal, cyber-attack, power or network failure, fuel or supply shortage, transport disruption, or any government, court or regulatory action including lockdown, curfew or restriction on movement or trade.

The affected party shall notify the other promptly and take reasonable steps to limit the impact. Obligations resume as soon as the event ends.

Force majeure does not excuse a payment obligation that has already fallen due, and does not apply to a failure caused by your own lack of preparation, staffing or stock. If an event prevents performance for more than 30 continuous days, either party may end this agreement on written notice without liability.

18. Grievance Redressal & Dispute Resolution

Grievance Officer
Abdul Rahim PA · Homakes Ventures LLP
No. A-31, Kamdenu Layout, B Narayanapura, Dooravani Nagar Post, Bengaluru, Karnataka 560016
Email: grievance@homakes.com · Phone: +91 7411147878

As required by the Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020 and the IT (Intermediary Guidelines) Rules, 2021, complaints are acknowledged within 48 hours and resolved within 15 days.

How to raise a grievance

Email: grievance@homakes.com or call: +91 7411147878 (Monday to Saturday, 10:00 AM – 7:00 PM). Quote your Partner ID and, where relevant, the order number.
If it is not resolved within 48 hours, write to the Grievance Officer above, marking the subject "Grievance – Partner".

Disputes between you and a Customer should be resolved directly in good faith. Where that fails, Homakes' dispute resolution team may decide the case under Seller Policies, Section 16. Its determination on refund liability is binding for platform purposes, but does not affect either party's rights in law.

Disputes between you and Homakes shall first be resolved amicably through mutual negotiation for 30 days. If unresolved, the dispute shall be referred to arbitration by a sole arbitrator mutually appointed by the Parties, under the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996. The seat and venue of arbitration shall be Bengaluru, Karnataka, and the language shall be English. Courts in Bengaluru, Karnataka shall have exclusive jurisdiction.

Nothing in this clause prevents you from approaching a consumer forum or any other authority where the law gives you that right.

19. Changes to These Terms

Homakes may amend these Terms to reflect changes in law, technology or business practice.
Material changes will be notified at least 15 days in advance by email, WhatsApp and in the Partner App, with the revision date shown. Minor corrections - typographical fixes, clarifications that do not change your obligations - take effect on publication.
Where a change is required to comply with law or a regulator's direction, it may take effect immediately, and you will be notified as soon as practicable.
Continuing to sell after the effective date means you accept the revised Terms.
If you do not accept a material change, you may end this agreement by written notice before the effective date, without serving the 30 days required under Section 14. You must still complete or cancel your open orders.
The current version always appears on the Seller Policies page, with its last-updated date and version number.

20. General

Independent contractor. Nothing here creates a partnership, joint venture, employment or agency relationship between you and Homakes, except the limited payment collection agency in Section 4. You are not entitled to any employment benefit, and you are responsible for your own compliance, insurance and statutory obligations.
Assignment. You may not assign or transfer your account or rights under these Terms. Homakes may assign them to an affiliate or successor.
Severability. If any provision is held invalid or unenforceable, it shall be severed and the remaining provisions continue in full force.
Waiver. Any delay or failure by Homakes to enforce a right is not a waiver of that right.
Entire agreement. These Terms, together with the Seller Policies, Delivery Guidelines, Refund & Disputes Policy, Privacy Policy and any signed Homakes Partner Agreement, constitute the entire agreement between you and Homakes and supersede all prior understandings, representations and assurances, whether oral or written.
Notices. Notices to you are sent to your registered email, WhatsApp number or in the Partner App, and are treated as received on the day sent. Notices to Homakes go to contact@homakes.com. You must keep your contact details current.
Language. These Terms are executed in English. Any translation is for convenience only; the English version prevails.
Governing law. These Terms are governed by the laws of India. Subject to the arbitration provision in Section 18, the courts at Bengaluru, Karnataka have exclusive jurisdiction.

About this document

Homakes Partner Terms of Use - the agreement between you and Homakes Ventures LLP.

For day-to-day operating rules - what you can list, photo specs, labelling, packing standards, dispatch timelines, Platform Charges, performance targets - see the Seller Policies tab. Packing and delivery obligations are in Delivery Guidelines; refund liability is in Refund & Disputes. All are incorporated into this agreement by reference and are equally binding.

Homakes Ventures LLP
No. A-31, Kamdenu Layout, B Narayanapura, Dooravani Nagar Post, Bengaluru, Karnataka 560016
partners@homakes.com · +91 7411147878

HOMAKES | Empowering Homes

Last updated: 14-Sep-2026 · Version: 1.02

Index

Who Can Sell
The Made-at-Home Standard
Documents & Licences
What You Can and Cannot Sell
Listing Standards
Photo Requirements
Labelling & Pack Declarations
Claims You May Not Make
Pricing & Custom Orders
Accepting & Fulfilling Orders
Packaging
Delivery
Platform Charges
Payouts
Taxes
Cancellations & Disputes
Ratings
Communication
Code of Conduct
Performance Standards
Customer Data & Content
What Gets You Suspended
Raising a Complaint

1. Who Can Sell

18 or older, legally able to contract in India.
Homakes is built for home-based makers - homemakers, home chefs, artisans and small home businesses.
You register as an individual or sole proprietor, in your own name, using your own Aadhaar and PAN. Homakes does not currently onboard companies, LLPs, partnerships, societies, trusts or FPOs. If you run a self-help group or a community unit, contact us before applying and we will tell you whether we can onboard you yet.
You must make or prepare the products yourself, at the premises you register. Household members may help; anyone outside your household must be declared as a production partner (Section 2).
One account per person. Duplicate accounts need written permission. You may not register if you have previously been suspended or terminated by Homakes.
You may sell across any or all modules on one account - food and crafts and home care together - provided you hold the licence each product needs (Section 3).
Keep your details current. Changes to bank, premises address, GST or FSSAI trigger re-verification.
Your store name. You choose the name your store trades under on Homakes. It must be unique on the platform, must not use another brand's name, a trademark, a celebrity name or a film or character title, and must not imply an approval, certification or award you do not hold. Homakes may require a change if a name breaches this or is confusingly similar to an existing store.
Homakes may approve, reject or pause a Partner account at its discretion. Suspension or termination of an existing account follows Section 22.

2. The Made-at-Home Standard

This is the rule Homakes is built on, and it applies identically whether you cook, craft, or blend.

You must have made it. Reselling - listing something as homemade or handmade when you did not make it - is the most serious violation on the platform and results in immediate suspension without warning (Section 22).

What counts as made by you

Category	Meaning	Example
Made by hand	Created from raw or basic materials by you	Pickle from raw mangoes · crochet bag from yarn · soap from oils and lye
Hand-altered	A bought plain base that you meaningfully transform with real skill	Plain cotton dupatta you block-print · plain diya you hand-paint · bought base oil you infuse with herbs
Hand-assembled	Bought components you combine into something new	Jewellery from bought beads and findings · gift hamper you curate and pack · spice blend from bought whole spices
Made with home tools	Made by you using a machine you operate at home	Sewing machine · oven · mixer-grinder · embroidery machine · 3D printer

What does not count

Buying a finished product and relabelling it - banned
Dropshipping, or shipping from a supplier's address - banned
Choosing a colour or size from a supplier's catalogue. Picking an option is not making.
Bulk-bought factory goods with your sticker on them - banned
Superficial alteration. A bought item with a mass-produced stick-on adornment added is not hand-altered. The alteration must take real craft skill.
Assembling something to the manufacturer's instructions - a flatpack item, a kit built as directed. Following instructions is not designing.

Hampers and gift boxes

Hampers are welcome, but they must be genuinely curated by you:

The hamper needs a clear theme tying together different types of items - "new baby", "Diwali sweets and diyas", "chai lover".
List every single item inside the hamper in your listing description, with quantities.
Generic concepts do not qualify as a theme - "mystery box", "assorted snacks", or a box holding one type of item in bulk.
A ready-made commercial gift basket you bought and resold is banned, as is a hamper containing only one brand's products.
Where the hamper contains food, every item inside must carry the declarations required in Section 7. If you include a bought item, you are responsible for its labelling and shelf life just as if you had made it.

Designs made with AI

If you used an AI tool to generate or help generate a design - artwork, a pattern, an invitation, a printed motif - say so in your listing description. AI-assisted work is allowed; hiding it is not.

Selling AI prompts, prompt bundles, or a file of someone else's work as your own is banned.

AI-generated product photos are not permitted. Your listing images must show the actual item you made - see Section 6.

Sourced inputs are fine - declare them

Raw materials, plain bases, yarn, fabric, beads, jars, essential oils, packaging: all normal. But if a customer could reasonably think you made something you bought, say so in the listing.

Helpers and production partners

Household members helping you is fine and needs no declaration.
Anyone outside your household who helps make your products - a neighbour who assists on festival volume, an SHG that does finishing, a tailor who stitches your design - must be declared as a production partner at onboarding and kept updated.
A production partner may help you make your products. They may not make them instead of you - if the work is entirely done elsewhere, that is outsourcing, not home-making, and is not permitted.
Failing to declare a production partner is a policy violation in its own right, separate from reselling.

Verification. Homakes may ask for a work-in-progress video, a kitchen or workspace photo, or a physical sample at any time. No response within 7 days pauses your listings.

3. Documents & Licences

Everyone submits

Document	Why
Aadhaar	Identity
PAN	Tax and payouts
Bank account + cancelled cheque or passbook page	Settlement (current or savings both fine)
Address proof of the premises where you make things	Pickup and verification
Passport-size photograph	Your profile on the app, and verification records
Photo of your kitchen or workspace	Onboarding verification
Store logo	Your storefront on the Homakes app
Store banner image	The header shown when a customer opens your store
GSTIN or GST Enrolment Number	Optional below the registration threshold - see Section 15

Submit a store logo and a store banner image at onboarding. These appear on your storefront in the Homakes app.
Both must be your own artwork. Do not use another brand's logo, a trademark, a licensed character, a celebrity image, or a downloaded stock image you have no rights to.
The logo and banner must not carry a phone number, WhatsApp, website, social media handle, price, discount or any invitation to order directly.
They must not imply an approval, certification, award or rating you do not hold.
Once approved, do not change your store logo or banner without informing Homakes. Submit the new image to support and wait for approval before it goes live. Unapproved changes may be reverted and repeated changes may pause your storefront.
Homakes may require a change where an image breaches this section, is poor quality, or misrepresents what you sell.

Then, by what you make

If you make…	You need	Notes
Any food - cooked meals, pickles, snacks, sweets, bakes, masalas, premixes	FSSAI Registration or Licence	Basic Registration up to ₹12 lakh turnover (Form A, via FoSCoS). State Licence ₹12 lakh–₹20 crore (Form B)
Soap, cream, lotion, oil, shampoo, balm, scrub, face pack, lip product	Cosmetic manufacturing licence (Form 32), State Licensing Authority	See Section 4, Restricted
Ayurvedic or herbal preparations with any therapeutic purpose	AYUSH manufacturing licence	Rarely obtainable from home - assume not eligible
Toys for children under 14	BIS certification (ISI mark) under the Toys (Quality Control) Order, 2020	Exempt if you hold artisan registration with the DC (Handicrafts or Handlooms), or the toy is GI-registered - upload the certificate. See Section 4
Crafts, décor, textiles, candles, incense, cleaning aids, household goods	Nothing beyond the common list	Optional: Handloom Mark, Craft Mark, GI certificate - upload and we display it

FSSAI rules that trip people up

Your FSSAI address must match the address where you actually cook. A licence for one address while cooking at another fails verification. This is the most common onboarding rejection.
Your FSSAI number appears on your listing page, on your pack, and on the customer invoice. Keep it accurate.
Selling food without a valid FSSAI number is a breach of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 - the liability is yours, not the platform's.

If you register for GST

Your pickup address must be in the same state your GST is registered in. A GSTIN for one state with a pickup address in another will fail verification.
GST verification can take up to 72 hours. You can complete the rest of your onboarding while it is under review.
Keep your GSTIN certificate ready to upload if automatic verification does not go through.

Homakes can guide you through FSSAI registration. Ask support.

4. What You Can and Cannot Sell

One list, all modules. What matters is the product, not the tab it sits under.

Open - list freely

Cooked food: meals, tiffins, biryani, curries, breakfast, fresh sweets and bakes
Packaged food: pickles, podis, masalas, chutneys, snacks, namkeen, dry sweets, laddoos, cookies, premixes, jams, preserves, health mixes
Crafts & décor: home décor, wall art, gifting, furnishings, floor coverings, kitchen and dining, textiles, accessories, stationery, lighting, bath linen, pooja items, handicrafts, festive crafts, instruments
Household: natural cleaning aids, detergents, candles, incense and dhoop, storage and organisers, cloth bags and covers
Dry herbal raw material sold as an ingredient with no application claim

Restricted - written approval required before listing

Item	Condition
Soap, cream, lotion, oil, shampoo, balm, scrub, face pack, lip product	Valid Form 32 cosmetic licence verified by Homakes. Anhydrous (water-free) products only at present - water-based products grow bacteria without proper preservation
Cold-chain or refrigerated food	Written approval, verified cold packaging
Fermented items, vinegars, kombucha	Written approval
Glass, ceramic, terracotta and heavy fragile goods	Packing standard in Section 11
Antiques, and any GI-tagged claim	Certificate on file
Toys and products for children	See Products for children and babies below

Banned - never, on any module

Alcohol, tobacco, e-cigarettes, pan masala, narcotics
Medicines, prescription drugs, supplements, nutraceuticals, injectables
Any product claiming to treat, cure or prevent a condition - this converts a cosmetic into a drug (see Section 8)
Fairness or skin-lightening products
Raw or frozen meat, fish and poultry as standalone items; any beef product
Sanitary, medical or contraceptive devices
Live animals, animal parts, ivory, protected wildlife or plant material
Weapons, blades, ammunition, fireworks, explosives, lighters
Flammable, corrosive, toxic or hazardous chemicals; industrial solvents; bleach; batteries
Counterfeits, replicas, unauthorised branded merchandise, licensed characters
Currency, coins, gold, silver, precious stones, bullion
Obscene, pornographic, hateful, communal, casteist or defamatory material
Gift cards or vouchers of your own - only Homakes issues these
Anything banned by Indian law, or needing a licence you don't hold

Products for children and babies

Products made for children carry safety rules far stricter than anything else you can list. Homakes cannot advise you on compliance - meeting the law is your responsibility.

Toys need BIS certification. Under the Toys (Quality Control) Order, 2020, toys intended for children under 14 must carry BIS certification and the ISI mark before they can be sold in India. This applies to handmade toys too - crochet dolls, wooden toys, cloth toys, rattles.

There is an important carve-out. Toys made by artisans registered with the Development Commissioner (Handicrafts) or (Handlooms), and GI-registered toys such as Channapatna toys, are exempt from BIS certification. If you rely on this, upload your registration or GI certificate to Homakes.

Verify your own position with BIS before listing a toy. If you hold neither BIS certification nor a valid artisan or GI exemption, do not list toys for under-14s.

Never allowed, for any age

Infant formula, infant milk substitutes and feeding bottles - restricted under the Infant Milk Substitutes, Feeding Bottles and Infant Foods Act, 1992, which also prohibits their promotion
Baby food for infants under 2 without the relevant FSSAI product approval
Cots, cradles, Moses baskets, bassinets, hanging baskets, baby boxes, inclined sleepers, and any furniture or accessory for infants to sleep in or on
Cot bumpers, cot liners, bed snakes, sleeping bags without arm holes, infant loungers, baby nap cushions, baby pillows and mattress toppers
Car seats, safety seats, and any accessory that restrains rather than supports a child's head or neck
Prams and pushchairs
Infant neck floats
Baby bottle propping devices
Decorated or bejewelled dummies and soothers

Choking and ingestion hazards - banned for under-3s

Anything with loose or unaffixed small parts - a piece that fits entirely inside a cylinder about 3.2 cm across
Small balls under about 4.4 cm across - marbles, pompoms, loose beads
Teething items with beads or small parts, nursing necklaces, rattles with loose parts, dummy clips
Amber teething necklaces, bracelets and anklets in any form

Also banned regardless of the intended buyer, because of the risk to children

Water beads and any product containing them
Novelty lighters - lighters shaped like toys, sweets or cartoon characters
Small high-powered magnets that can be swallowed, including magnetic building sets, fidget toys and magnetic jewellery; and magnets made to look like sweets

Restricted, with conditions

Children's nightwear and loungewear - loose-fitting, non-flame-resistant nightwear for children from 10 months upward is not permitted. Tight-fitting nightwear, and nightwear in flame-resistant fabric, is allowed.
Upper-body outerwear with drawstrings for children aged 14 and under - hoodies, jackets, capes, ponchos. Use press studs, buttons, hook-and-loop or elastic instead.

Patterns and instructions count too. You may not list a pattern, design or set of instructions for making anything banned above.

Listing a banned item means immediate removal, payment hold, and possible permanent deactivation.

5. Listing Standards

Title: under 60 characters, plain language, key detail first.
"Homemade Spicy Mango Pickle – Kerala Style – 250g"
Description: 60–150 words. What it is, what's in it, who it's for, how to use or store it.
Choose the correct module and category. Wrong-category listings are removed.
MRP must be inclusive of all taxes, and must match the MRP printed on the pack.
One listing per product. Creating several listings for the same item to occupy more search results is prohibited (Section 19).

Every listing needs: net weight or dimensions, price, stock, prep/dispatch time, HSN code (GST sellers).

Then, depending on what it is:

Product type	Also required
Any food	Full ingredient list, allergens, veg/non-veg, spice level, shelf life, storage instructions, FSSAI number
Crafts, décor, textiles	Material, size, weight, colour, care instructions, craft or state of origin, made-to-order flag
Cosmetics (restricted)	Full ingredient list, net quantity, directions, patch-test warning, licence number
Household goods	Contents, net quantity, directions, any safety warning
Toys for under-14s	BIS licence number, or your artisan or GI exemption reference (Section 4)
Handmade items with natural variation	A note that weave, grain, tone or finish differs piece to piece
Anything hand-altered or assembled	What you bought and what you did to it
Hampers and gift boxes	Every item inside, with quantities, and the theme
Anything designed with AI assistance	A statement that AI was used
Made-to-order items	Your real production time, and what the customer can customise
Items for a festival or occasion	Your cut-off date for ordering, so the item arrives in time (Refund & Disputes, Section 8)

Never in a listing: phone numbers, WhatsApp links, personal websites, social media handles, external payment links, "order direct" messages, competitor names, fake MRP inflation, or any claim prohibited in Section 8.

Listings are reviewed in 12–24 hours with an approval or a reason.

6. Photo Requirements

Minimum 500×500 px, JPG or PNG, max 2 MB.
First image: product only, plain white or neutral background.
2 to 5 images. Front view, close-up, scale reference, packaging.
A packaging photo is mandatory for everything that ships.
Cooked food: real photos of your own dish. Stock images and internet downloads are removed on sight.
Photograph the item you are actually selling - the same size, quantity, colour and finish the customer will receive. If you sell a 250g jar, do not photograph the 500g one.
Show props separately, or say so. If anything in the photo is not included in the price - a plate, a basket, styling items - state that in your description.
Not allowed: text overlays, price tags, MRP stickers, other brands' logos, watermarks, your phone number or address, social media handles, collages, borders.
AI-generated product images are not allowed. Your photos must show the real item (Section 2).
Photos must be yours - taken by you, or taken for you. Using someone else's image is an IP violation (Section 21).

Made-to-order and personalised items

Your first image must show a finished, personalised example of what the customer will receive - a name actually engraved, a monogram actually embroidered, a portrait actually drawn.
Never use a blank product or a placeholder mockup as the first image. "Your Text Here", "Your Name Here" and empty templates are not allowed as the main photo.
Computer-generated mockups are fine in your additional images, to show colour or font options. The first image must be the real thing.

Handmade variation

Where each piece differs - weave, grain, tone, finish - your photos should show a representative piece, and your description must say the item varies (Section 5).
Do not photograph your single best piece if the rest differ noticeably. That is the most common cause of a "not as described" case.

Photos you did not take

To use a customer's review photo in a listing, you need that customer's permission first.
If someone outside your household helps make your items, the photo must still show your finished product, and that production partner must be declared (Section 2).
If a person appears in your photo, you need their consent before you upload it.

Free tool: Canva → Apps → Product Photos for white backgrounds.

7. Labelling & Pack Declarations

Anything that ships pre-packed carries legal labelling duties. These are your liability, not Homakes'.

All pre-packed goods

Under the Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodities) Rules, 2011: product name · net quantity · MRP inclusive of all taxes · your name and full address · month and year of manufacture · consumer care contact.

The MRP on the pack must match the MRP in your listing. A mismatch is a Legal Metrology offence and a customer complaint.
Declare net quantity in metric units - g, kg, ml, l - not in pieces alone.
Your consumer care contact must be a working phone number or email that you actually monitor.

Food - additionally

Under the FSS (Labelling & Display) Regulations, 2020: full ingredient list in descending order · veg (green) or non-veg (brown) mark · allergen declaration · date of manufacture and Best Before / Use By · FSSAI logo and 14-digit number · storage instructions.

Minimum 15 days shelf life remaining on the day of dispatch for packaged food.
No artificial colours or preservatives unless declared.
Declare the major allergens - milk, egg, fish, shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat and gluten, soy, sesame - and any added sulphites. Say so even if the allergen is present only as a trace from shared equipment.
Cooked food needs no printed label, but the order slip must show dish name, veg/non-veg and allergens.
Spoilage inside the stated shelf life is refunded at your cost.
Nutritional declaration is required on most packaged food. Check your product against the current FSS regulations before you print labels.

Cosmetics - additionally

Under the Cosmetics Rules, 2020: batch number (B. No.) · manufacturing licence number (M. L. No.) · address of the premises where made · date of manufacture and expiry · full ingredient list (packs above 60g/60ml) · directions and warnings · "For external use only. Patch test before first use."

Batch numbering is mandatory from your first sale - without it a product recall is impossible.

Toys and children's items

Toys for children under 14 must carry the BIS standard mark and licence number, unless you hold a valid artisan or GI exemption (Section 4). Where a small-parts or age warning applies, print it on the pack.

If something goes wrong with a batch

If you discover a problem after dispatch - contamination, a wrong ingredient, a labelling error, a safety defect - tell Homakes immediately at contact@homakes.com. Do not contact customers directly. Homakes will identify affected orders and manage the recall with you. Concealing a known defect is a serious violation.

8. Claims You May Not Make

Applies to every listing, every module, every word - title, description, photo, packaging, store name and chat.

Never claim that a product cures, treats, prevents, heals or diagnoses anything.

The moment a product claims a therapeutic effect it stops being food or cosmetic and becomes a drug under Indian law - which you are not licensed to make.

Allowed	Banned
Hair oil	Hair oil that stops hair fall
Herbal face pack	Face pack that cures acne
Ubtan	Removes pigmentation
Millet cookies	Cures diabetes
Chyawanprash-style mix	Boosts immunity
Herbal tea	Aids weight loss
Ragi porridge mix	Increases a baby's weight
Ajwain water	Cures colic in infants
Cold-pressed coconut oil	Reverses greying

Also banned: "medically approved", "doctor recommended", "clinically proven", "FDA approved", "100% safe", "no side effects", fairness or skin-lightening claims, and any fertility, eyesight or anti-ageing cure claim.

Claims aimed at pregnant women, new mothers or babies carry the highest risk. Do not claim a product increases milk supply, aids conception, helps a baby gain weight, or treats any infant condition.

Allowed if true: sugar-free, no preservatives, millet-based, high in fibre, cold-pressed, made with A2 ghee, chemical-free, gluten-free, handmade, small-batch.

Claims you must be able to prove

Organic - only with valid certification under NPOP (India Organic) or PGS-India (Jaivik Bharat). "Natural", "farm-fresh" and "chemical-free" are not substitutes for certification, and cannot be used to imply it.
GI tag, Handloom Mark, Craft Mark, BIS, FSSAI Organic - only with the certificate on file with Homakes (Section 3).
Nutritional claims - "high in fibre", "low fat", "source of protein" - must meet the thresholds in the FSS (Advertising and Claims) Regulations, 2018.
Homakes may ask you to substantiate any claim. If you cannot, the listing is removed.

This is not only a Homakes rule. It engages the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940, the Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act, 1954, the FSS (Advertising and Claims) Regulations, 2018 and the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 - penalties fall on the maker, and misleading advertising can attract fines and a ban on further advertising.

9. Pricing & Custom Orders

You set your own price. Homakes never fixes or caps it and may only offer non-binding guidance.
Price must be inclusive of GST, and must match the MRP printed on the pack (Section 7).
Set your price to cover your ingredients, your packaging, your time and the Platform Charge. Homakes does not subsidise a price set too low.
No listing fee, no onboarding charge.
You may not raise the price after an order is confirmed. If you've underpriced, cancel and relist - do not renegotiate with the customer.
No fake MRP inflation. Do not show a struck-through price you have never actually charged.
Made-to-order and bespoke work: publish a base price and state clearly what changes it - size, material, quantity, personalisation. Where the final price genuinely cannot be known at listing time, ask Homakes support to raise a custom quote. Never settle a price difference outside Homakes, in cash, by UPI or by any direct transfer.
Homakes-funded promotions are optional. Seller-funded discounts are deducted at settlement and shown in advance.
Homakes may run platform-wide sales and festival campaigns. Participation is optional, and you will be told in advance what a campaign costs you.

10. Accepting & Fulfilling Orders

Module	Accept within	Ready / dispatch within
Eat Fresh	10 minutes	The promised slot, minimum 2 hours from order
Food Products	2 hours	12–24 hours
Crafts & Decors	4 hours	12 hours, or your stated made-to-order time
Home & Body Care	4 hours	12 hours

Working days only. Sundays and public holidays do not count towards your dispatch time, and there is no Sunday pickup (Delivery Guidelines, Section 7).

Unaccepted orders auto-cancel and count against you.
Check the order before you accept it - quantity, variant, personalisation, delivery date. Once accepted, it is yours to fulfil.
Keep stock accurate. If you can't fulfil, cancel immediately and tell support - never let an order lapse.
Mark yourself offline when you aren't making. An open store that rejects orders is treated as cancellation.
Taking leave? Set your store inactive in advance. Give Homakes notice where you can, so open orders can be managed rather than cancelled.
Have the package sealed and ready before pickup arrives.
Send exactly what was ordered. Do not substitute an ingredient, a colour, a size or a flavour without the customer agreeing through Homakes messaging first. An unagreed substitution is a wrong-item case and you bear the refund.
Festival commitments are binding. If you can't take volume, lower your published capacity in advance.
For occasion-dated orders - a festival, birthday, wedding or event - set a processing time you can actually meet, and publish an order cut-off date (Section 5). Missing a stated date can make you liable for a full refund including freight. See Refund & Disputes, Section 8.
Going inactive for two days or more without telling Homakes can lead to suspension (Section 22).

11. Packaging

Packaging is your own cost. Homakes can introduce you to packaging vendors if you need a supplier - ask support.

Clean, new 3-ply or 5-ply box, or a tamper-evident pouch.
Pack tight - nothing should move inside.
Seal every seam with wide tape. Don't tape diagonally across edges.
Shipping label flat on the largest face. Never fold, staple or tape over the barcode.
"Fragile" stickers where relevant.
Nothing inside but the product - no business cards, phone numbers, social handles or invitations to order direct.

Food: food-grade containers only, leak-proof for liquids and oils, double-bag anything oily. Cooked food needs insulated, tamper-sealed containers with gravy separated. Snacks heat-sealed; pickle jars bubble-wrapped and boxed. Pack with clean hands, in a clean space - never pack food alongside cleaning products, pets or strong-smelling items.

Cosmetics: leak-proof, sealed, batch number visible on the pack.

Fragile crafts: bubble wrap twice, fill voids, 2 cm cushioning on every side for ceramic, glass and terracotta.

Photograph every sealed parcel before handover. It is your main defence in a damage dispute (Refund & Disputes, Section 4).

Damage from bad packing is charged to you. Damage by the courier despite correct packing is not.

Full packing standards by product type are in the Delivery Guidelines tab.

12. Delivery

How orders reach customers, pickup, shipping charges and RTO are set out in full in the Delivery Guidelines tab. In short:

Eat Fresh: Homakes' own delivery fleet collects from your door, in selected service areas, typically 45–90 minutes.
Everything else: Homakes' logistics partners, nationwide. You don't choose the courier, and you must never arrange your own.
Pickups are scheduled in the Partner App. Working days only; no Sunday pickup.
A customer may pay online or by cash on delivery. Where it is COD, the Delivery Partner collects the cash - never you. You are paid through your weekly settlement either way. Never accept cash, UPI or any direct payment from a customer yourself.
Delivery is confirmed by OTP. Once the customer shares the OTP with the Delivery Partner, the order is complete and no refund can be claimed after that point.
Non-serviceable pincodes are cancelled centrally - no penalty to you.
Keep your pickup address current. We collect from the address on record only, and an RTO caused by a wrong address is charged to you.

13. Platform Charges

You set your own price. Homakes does not fix or cap it.
Homakes deducts a Platform Charge from each completed order. Your share is [X]% of the sale value after that charge.
Your exact share depends on two things: your weekly order volume, and how consistently you meet Homakes' quality and timing standards. The better you perform, the higher your share.
Your current rate is shown in your Partner Dashboard. It is also confirmed to you at onboarding before you list anything.
No listing fee, no onboarding charge.
Payment gateway charges are [included in / additional to] the Platform Charge.
Raw materials, ingredients, packaging and your own equipment are your cost.
Homakes will help you find vendors for raw materials, ingredients and packaging. Buying from a vendor we introduce is your choice and your contract - the purchase is between you and that vendor, and Homakes takes no commission on it and gives no warranty for their goods or prices.
Homakes provides the platform, delivery and logistics, payment collection, marketing and customer support.
Shipping is [paid by the customer at checkout / built into your price], per the plan you select.
Fee avoidance is prohibited - no routing customers to outside payment, no splitting orders, no inflating any charge to disguise your price, and no asking a customer to cancel and pay you directly.
Your income is what remains after Platform Charges, applicable penalties and any refunds caused by your error. Every deduction is itemised on your settlement statement (Section 14).
Rate changes are notified 15 days in advance. If you do not accept a change, you may exit under Section 22.

14. Payouts

To your registered bank account only. No third-party accounts.
Weekly, every Wednesday. Orders whose return window closed in the previous week settle in that run.
Return windows: 24 hours for Eat Fresh and Food Products · 7 days for Crafts & Decors and Home & Body Care, from delivery.
Your statement shows order value, Platform Charge, taxes, TCS, TDS, shipping recoveries, penalties and net payout.
Deductions: refunds caused by your error, RTO freight, penalties, seller-funded discounts, chargebacks.
Payouts are held during a fraud investigation, an open dispute, or if your KYC, bank or FSSAI details are invalid or expired.
Where a deduction is larger than the payout due, the balance carries to the next cycle.
Keep your bank details accurate. A transfer that fails because of wrong details moves to the following cycle, and repeated failures may pause your account.
Payouts may be delayed by bank or public holidays, or by a banking system outage. Homakes will tell you if a run is affected.
Raise settlement disputes within 30 days of the statement date. After that, the statement is treated as accepted.

15. Taxes

GST registration. Thresholds are ₹40 lakh turnover for goods, ₹20 lakh for services (₹20 lakh / ₹10 lakh in special-category states).

Selling through a marketplace normally triggers mandatory registration. But under Notification 34/2023-Central Tax, small sellers below the threshold are exempt if they hold a GST Enrolment Number and sell only within their own state.

Full GST registration is optional for small sellers on Homakes. If your turnover is below the threshold, you may sell without a GSTIN - but you should obtain a GST Enrolment Number to rely on the exemption above. It is free and takes minutes on the portal.

You must register for GST once your turnover crosses the threshold, or if you want to sell outside your own state. Sellers operating on an Enrolment Number only are limited to intra-state orders.

Watch your turnover. Crossing the threshold is your responsibility to monitor, not Homakes'. Register before you cross it - selling without registration once you are liable attracts interest and penalty.

Selling only GST-exempt goods. Some categories are exempt from GST - certain handicrafts, some unbranded and unprocessed edible goods, and others. If everything you sell is exempt, you may declare that at onboarding and sell without a GSTIN. Check your own products against the current exempt list before you rely on this - the classification is yours to get right, not Homakes'. Note that branding an otherwise-exempt food product can make it taxable.

HSN and tax rate. If you supply a GSTIN, you must also supply the correct HSN code for every listing. Where you do not set a rate on a listing, Homakes applies the default rate notified for that category - which may not be right for your product, so set it yourself.

TCS - Homakes collects Tax Collected at Source under Section 52 of the CGST Act at the rate prevailing from time to time - currently 0.5% - and deposits it. It appears in your GSTR-2X/2B and is claimable against your liability.

TDS - Under Section 194-O of the Income Tax Act, Homakes deducts TDS at the rate prevailing from time to time - currently 0.1% - on gross order value. Not applicable to an individual or HUF with gross sales up to ₹5 lakh in a financial year who has furnished PAN and Aadhaar. Without a valid PAN, a higher rate applies.

Yours to handle: correct GST rate, correct HSN code per listing (missing HSN delists the product), your own returns under your chosen scheme, your own income tax, and your own books and invoices. Homakes issues TDS/TCS statements for your filing - it is your responsibility to claim the credit within the time the law allows.

Homakes does not give tax advice. If you are unsure, consult a tax professional.

16. Cancellations & Disputes

When you cancel

Cancel in the Partner App immediately and notify support. Never let an order lapse.
Cancellations count against your rate (Section 20) and may carry a penalty of [₹X or X%].
Cancelling after pickup is scheduled also makes you liable for the wasted run.

When a dispute is raised

Respond within 3 days. No response closes the case against you.
We review the customer's unboxing video, your listing and your packing photo.
Photograph every sealed package before pickup. It is your main defence.
Delivery is confirmed by OTP. Once the customer shares it with the Delivery Partner, the order is complete and no refund can be claimed after that point.

You pay for

Wrong item, missing item or short quantity
Spoiled inside the stated shelf life
Damage from inadequate packing
Materially different from your listing - refund plus return freight
Late dispatch by you
RTO caused by a wrong pickup address
An unagreed substitution - a different ingredient, colour, size or flavour
A missed date on an occasion-dated order (Refund & Disputes, Section 8)

You don't pay for

Courier damage where you packed to the Delivery Guidelines
Damage or misuse after delivery
Taste, colour, shade, fragrance or size preference where your listing was accurate
Natural variation in handmade goods - weave, grain, tone and finish differ piece to piece and are not defects, provided you said so in your listing (Section 5)
Courier or weather delay
Non-serviceable pincode
Any complaint raised after the delivery OTP was shared
Complaints about the shipping fee itself

Made-to-order and personalised items are non-returnable unless damaged or defective on delivery. Approved refunds reach the customer in 5–7 business days and are deducted from your next settlement.

Payment taken outside Homakes checkout carries no protection at all. You absorb the whole loss.

Full detail on refund grounds, evidence, late delivery and non-delivery is in the Refund & Disputes tab.

17. Ratings

Your rating drives your search ranking and your Platform Charge rate. You may not manage it artificially.

Customers may rate your order from 1 to 5 stars, with a photo, within [X] days of delivery. Your store rating is the average across your recent orders.

You must keep a minimum rating of 3.5 stars to stay active (Section 20).

You may

Ask for feedback once, neutrally, in the in-app message thread
Respond once, factually and courteously, to any review of 3 stars or below
Report a review containing personal data, abuse, communal or casteist language, spam, or a complaint outside your control - a courier delay, a platform outage

You may not

Pay or incentivise anyone for a review, including with a discount, a free sample or a gift
Ask a customer to change or delete a review
Solicit reviews only from customers you know are happy
Review your own products, or have family or friends do it
Review or report a competitor in bad faith
Use any third-party review service
Put a note in the parcel asking for a review
Contact a customer outside Homakes about a review

Review manipulation is treated as fraud and triggers an immediate payment hold (Section 22).

A poor review is not always a problem. Respond well to one and customers often read that as a sign you can be trusted.

18. Communication

All contact goes through Homakes in-app messaging. Never share or request phone numbers, WhatsApp, email or UPI IDs.
Respond within 12 hours. Eat Fresh orders need a faster response while your store is open.
Messaging is for order fulfilment and service only. Marketing messages and mailing-list additions are prohibited.
No unsolicited contact, no contact after a customer opts out, no harassment.
Do not contact a customer once their order is closed, and never use an order to start a personal conversation.
Be courteous even when a customer is not. If a customer is abusive, do not reply in kind - report it to Homakes.
Abusive, discriminatory or threatening language means immediate removal.
Never share an OTP, PIN or password. No one from Homakes will ever ask.
Homakes may review message threads when investigating a dispute or a complaint.

Delivery Partners

Treat Delivery Partners with the same courtesy as customers. They are doing a job on your behalf.
Do not ask a Delivery Partner to collect money, carry a personal message, deliver to a different address, or take anything not part of the order.
If a pickup goes wrong, report it to Homakes rather than arguing at your door.

Harassment - zero tolerance

Harassment of anyone on Homakes is prohibited. This covers customers, other sellers, delivery partners and Homakes staff, and it applies everywhere on the platform - your listings, your store description, messages, reviews and review responses.

Prohibited in every case:

Exposing someone's personal information - sharing a person's phone number, address, photograph or other details to harass, intimidate or expose them
Sharing intimate images or video of anyone without their consent
Threats and extortion, including non-violent threats and blackmail - for example, threatening to publish someone's details unless they withdraw a complaint or change a review
Sexual harassment - sexual solicitation, sending sexual content, or unwanted romantic advances
Severe insults meant to demean, and abusive or offensive language
Coordinated harassment - organising or joining a group targeting one person to shame or intimidate them
Stalking - continuing to contact someone on Homakes after unwanted contact here, offline, or on any other service
Discriminatory, communal or casteist abuse of any kind

This is not only a Homakes rule. Depending on what is done, such conduct can be an offence under the Information Technology Act, 2000 and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, and harassment of Homakes employees engages our obligations under the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013.

Harassment results in immediate removal from the platform, and Homakes will report conduct to the police where the law requires or the circumstances warrant it.

If you are being harassed on Homakes, report it at once to contact@homakes.com with the order number or store name and screenshots. Do not retaliate - respond through us.

19. Code of Conduct

Give accurate information about yourself and your products
Maintain hygienic, safe conditions wherever you make, store and pack
Honour your prices, prep times and capacity
Keep your licences, KYC and bank details current
Cooperate with audits, sample requests and inspections
Compete fairly

Don't

Divert customers to an external site or direct payment
Run more than one account without permission
Let anyone act on your behalf in a way that breaks these policies - you are responsible for your account
Raise a price after an order is confirmed
Create multiple listings for the same product to occupy more search slots
Manipulate clicks, carts, stock, orders, reviews or ranking
Artificially inflate traffic - bots, paid clicks
Coordinate pricing with other sellers
Disparage, sabotage or falsely review another Homakes seller
Order from your own listings
Contact another seller's customers, or approach a customer you met through Homakes outside the platform
Use Homakes' name, logo or content in your own marketing without permission
Post false, misleading, obscene, communal, casteist or defamatory content
Run fake or misleading promotions, or exaggerate what your product does
Reduce portion sizes or substitute ingredients without telling Homakes
Sell, transfer or share your account with anyone
Dump waste in unauthorised places, mix food waste with plastics, burn harmful materials, or leave uncovered garbage in your kitchen

Hygiene and safe working

Keep your preparation area clean, and keep pets, children and household clutter away from where you cook or pack.
Use purified water for washing, cooking and beverages.
Store raw and cooked food separately.
Do not prepare or pack orders while you have an infectious illness, a stomach upset, or an open wound on your hands.
Homakes may conduct surprise visits, premises inspections, tasting samples or lab testing at any time.

Waste management

Segregate biodegradable and non-biodegradable waste and dispose of it daily through authorised channels. You are solely liable for any penalty imposed by a local authority for improper disposal - Homakes is not responsible for your non-compliance.

Violations lead to listing removal, ranking suppression, payment forfeiture, or removal of selling privileges (Section 22).

20. Performance Standards

Homakes tracks your performance continuously. Your weekly earnings, customer ratings and performance insights are visible in your Partner Dashboard - check it, so an action never comes as a surprise.

Metric	Target
Customer rating	3.5 stars and above
Order acceptance	Above 95%
Seller cancellation	Below 5%
Late dispatch	Below 10%
Valid complaints	Below 2%
In-stock accuracy	Above 90%
Policy violations	Zero
Message response	Under 12 hours

Metrics are measured over your recent orders, so one bad week does not define you - and a good run pulls you back up.

How we check

Surprise visits, premises and hygiene inspections.
Tasting samples, and food sent for lab testing where needed.
Customer feedback, ratings, complaints and sales data.

You must give access for an inspection and provide a sample when asked. Refusing is itself a violation.

If you fall below standard

Written warning setting out the issue - quality, hygiene, timing or conduct - and a reasonable period to correct it
Ranking suppression, and removal of the affected listings
Temporary suspension until you take corrective action, with payouts held
Permanent deactivation

Serious violations skip the ladder. Unsafe products, a safety risk, fraud or misconduct can result in immediate suspension.

If you are suspended or deactivated, you may write to contact@homakes.com within 15 days setting out your side, and Homakes will review the decision.

If you do well

Sustained good performance improves your Platform Charge rate and your placement in search, and earns Top Partner recognition, featured stories and reels, monthly rewards and referral bonuses.

Homakes may also promote you through social media, chef and maker spotlights, and seasonal campaigns.

21. Customer Data & Content

Customer data

Name, address and phone come to you only to fulfil that order.
Don't save it to a personal list, spreadsheet, WhatsApp broadcast or CRM.
Don't contact a customer once the order closes.
Never post a customer's details or photo publicly.
Delete it once the order and its return window have closed. You have no reason to keep it after that.
Don't share it with anyone - not a helper, not a family member, not another seller.
If you lose customer data or someone gets hold of it - a lost phone, a hacked account, a shared screenshot - tell Homakes immediately at contact@homakes.com. Reporting it quickly protects both you and the customer.
If a customer asks you directly to show, correct or delete their data, forward the request to contact@homakes.com within 7 days. Do not ignore it.

Photos and text

Use only your own photos and your own words.
Don't copy another seller's listing, photos or product names.
Don't use brand logos, film or cartoon characters, celebrity images, sports team marks, or any downloaded image you lack rights to. Character-themed crochet, film-branded rakhis and team merchandise are the most common infringement on Indian handmade platforms - and the most common cause of suspension.
The same applies to your store name, store logo and banner (Sections 1 and 3).
Don't claim a certification, award or rating you don't hold.
Don't use the Homakes logo, name or tagline in your own packaging or marketing without written permission.

Someone copying you? Email contact@homakes.com with your listing link, the infringing link, and proof the work is yours. We will acknowledge within 48 hours.

Told your listing infringes someone else's work? If your listing is removed on a notice and you believe it was wrong, write to contact@homakes.com with your grounds and we will review it.

Legal position on your obligations as a Data Fiduciary and on content licensing: Partner Terms of Use, Sections 8 and 10.

22. What Gets You Suspended

Immediately, without warning

A banned item, or an unlicensed food or cosmetic product
Reselling something you did not make
Fake, forged or expired documents
Fraud, fake reviews, or payment taken off-platform
A verified safety or hygiene incident
Misusing customer data
A therapeutic or cure claim
Harassing or threatening a customer, another seller, a Delivery Partner or Homakes staff
Registering again after a previous suspension, or registering for someone who has been removed

After warning

Repeated quality or hygiene failures that are not corrected
Inactivity without notice - you stop taking orders or stay unavailable for 2 days or more without informing Homakes
Repeatedly missing the targets in Section 20
Poor packaging causing repeated damage
Repeated unagreed substitutions, or repeatedly sending the wrong item
Lapsed FSSAI or KYC
Refusing an inspection, a sample request or a verification check

Penalties and deductions may apply for

Late or missed orders, verified complaints, wrong or missing items
Poor packaging
Sudden unavailability without notice
Repeated hygiene or quality failures

During suspension: your listings go offline, open orders must be completed or cancelled, and payouts are held until every order and dispute closes.

If you think we got it wrong. Write to contact@homakes.com within 15 days setting out your side, and Homakes will review the decision and respond. If a suspension is lifted, held payouts are released in the next settlement run.

Exit. Either you or Homakes may end the partnership by giving 30 days' written notice. Complete your open orders first; final settlement follows the last return window.

Account and data deletion: email contact@homakes.com from your registered address with your name, mobile number and Partner ID. Done within 7 working days. Tax records are kept as law requires.

Full terms: Partner Terms of Use, Section 14.

23. Support & Raising a Complaint

What you need	Contact
Partner onboarding	Email: partners@homakes.com or call: +91 7411147878
Tech / App support	Email: support@homakes.com or call: +91 9972939093
FSSAI help	Email: support@homakes.com or call: +91 7411147878
Payments & payouts	Email: accounts@homakes.com or call: +91 7411147878
Emergency	+91 9686193130

Day-to-day coordination, order reminders and announcements also run through your Homakes WhatsApp group.

If a complaint is not resolved

Email partners@homakes.com or call +91 7411147878, quoting your Partner ID and the order number.
No resolution within 48 hours → write to the Grievance Officer below, subject line "Grievance – Partner".

Grievance Officer
Abdul Rahim PA · Homakes Ventures LLP
No. A-31, Kamdenu Layout, B Narayanapura, Dooravani Nagar Post, Bangalore, Karnataka 560016
Email: grievance@homakes.com · Phone: +91 7411147878

Complaints are acknowledged within 48 hours and resolved within 15 days, as required by the Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020.

Nothing here prevents you from approaching a consumer forum or any other authority where the law gives you that right.

Policy Changes

Homakes may update these policies. Material changes are notified 15 days in advance by email, WhatsApp and in the Partner App, with the revision date shown. Minor corrections take effect on publication.

Continuing to sell after the effective date means you accept the change. If you do not accept a material change, you may end the agreement by written notice before the effective date (Partner Terms of Use, Section 19).

The current version always appears on this page, with its last-updated date and version number.

About this document

Homakes Seller Policies - the operating rulebook for selling on Homakes.

For the legal agreement - liability, indemnity, intellectual property, arbitration, governing law - see the Terms of Use tab. Packing and delivery are in Delivery Guidelines; refund liability is in Refund & Disputes. All are binding.

This document covers your obligations as a Partner. Customer-facing rules live in the Homakes Customer Policy.

Homakes Ventures LLP
No. A-31, Kamdenu Layout, B Narayanapura, Dooravani Nagar Post, Bangalore, Karnataka 560016
partners@homakes.com · +91 7411147878

HOMAKES | Empowering Homes

Last updated: 14-Sep-2026 · Version: 1.02

1. Before You Pack

Check the order: right item, right quantity, right variant, and any personalisation.
Make sure your workspace is clean and hygienic. Keep pets, children and household clutter away from where you pack.
Have the parcel sealed and ready before the pickup partner arrives. Packing at the door delays the whole run.
Photograph every sealed parcel before handover. This is your main defence in a damage dispute.
If you cannot fulfil, cancel in the Partner App immediately - never let an order lapse.

2. Packing Standards - All Products

Packaging is your own cost. Homakes can introduce you to packaging vendors if you need a supplier - ask support.

Use a clean, new 3-ply or 5-ply corrugated box, or a tamper-evident pouch. Never reuse a box that carried something else.
Pack tight. Nothing should move when you shake it.
Seal every seam with wide tape. Do not tape diagonally across box edges.
Fill empty space with paper or foam so the contents can't shift.
Match the box to the contents. An oversized box costs you more in volumetric weight (Section 9) and lets the product move around.
Nothing goes in the parcel but the product - no business cards, phone numbers, social media handles, discount coupons, or any invitation to order directly.

3. Packing Food

Food-grade containers only.
Leak-proof for liquids, oils and gravies. Double-bag anything oily.
Let hot food cool before sealing. Steam trapped in a sealed container turns to water and spoils the food.
Cooked food: insulated containers, tamper-evident seal, gravy separated from rice and bread, spill-proof lids.
Snacks and dry items: heat-sealed or vacuum-sealed pouches.
Pickles and preserves in glass jars: seal the lid, bubble-wrap the jar, then box it. Oil leaking in transit ruins the parcel and the refund is yours.
Keep veg and non-veg separate - separate containers, separate bags, never sharing a lid.
Pack fragile items like laddoos and cookies in a rigid container, not a pouch. They arrive as crumbs otherwise.
Check the pack label carries everything required before it goes out - see Seller Policies, Section 7.

4. Packing Cosmetics & Home Care

Leak-proof and sealed. Tape the cap or use an induction seal.
Batch number must be visible on the pack - without it, a recall is impossible.
Glass bottles and jars must be bubble-wrapped.
Keep liquids upright and mark the box accordingly.
Never pack cosmetics or cleaning products in the same parcel as food. A leak contaminates the food, and the whole order becomes your refund.
Check the expiry date before you dispatch. Do not send anything close to expiry.
Cleaning products and anything with a strong smell - seal in a separate bag so the scent does not transfer.
Balms, butters and anything that softens in heat need a rigid container and a tight lid. They travel through warm vehicles and warehouses.

5. Packing Fragile Crafts

Always bubble wrap twice.
2 cm of cushioning on every side for ceramic, glass and terracotta.
Fill all voids so the item cannot move inside the box.
Wrap protruding parts separately.
Wrap each piece individually where an order has several. Pieces knocking against each other is the most common breakage.
Use a box inside a box for anything very fragile, with cushioning between the two.
Add a "Fragile" or "Handle with care" sticker.
A "Fragile" sticker is not a substitute for packing properly. If a piece breaks and it was under-packed, the refund is yours (Section 11).

6. Labelling the Parcel

Fix the Homakes shipping label flat on the largest surface.
Never fold, staple or tape over the barcode. A damaged barcode means a failed pickup.
Print the label clearly. A faint or smudged label will not scan - if your printer is low on ink, print it again.
Check the label matches the parcel before you seal it. Sticking the wrong label on a parcel sends the order to the wrong customer, and both refunds are yours.
One label per parcel. If an order ships in two boxes, each needs its own label.
Remove or cover any old label if a box has been used before for your own storage. Two barcodes on one parcel will misroute it.
Add handling stickers (Fragile, This Side Up) where relevant.
Do not write anything else on the outside of the parcel - no phone number, no store name beyond what the label carries, no message to the customer.

7. Pickup

Schedule pickups in the Partner App.
Pickups run on working days only. No Sunday pickup.
Keep your pickup address current - we collect from the address on record and nowhere else.
Be available during your pickup window. Repeated missed pickups count against your performance.
If you will not be there, reschedule in the app before the window rather than leaving the parcel with a neighbour or outside your door.
For occasion-dated orders - festival, birthday, wedding - dispatch within your stated processing time. Missing a stated date can make you liable for a full refund including freight. See Refund & Disputes, Section 8.
Never arrange your own courier for a Homakes order. It removes your proof of dispatch, and any loss becomes yours.
Hand over only sealed, labelled parcels.
Get the pickup recorded. The Delivery Partner scans the parcel at handover - that scan is your proof of dispatch. If it does not scan, tell Homakes before the rider leaves.
Treat Delivery Partners courteously. Do not ask a rider to collect money, carry a personal message, or take anything that is not part of the order.
If a pickup goes wrong, report it to Homakes rather than arguing at your door.

8. How Orders Reach the Customer

Module	Method	Typical time
Eat Fresh	Homakes' own delivery fleet, in selected service areas	45–90 minutes from pickup
Food Products	Homakes' logistics partners, nationwide	1–4 days
Crafts & Decors	Homakes' logistics partners, nationwide	2–7 days
Home & Body Care	Homakes' logistics partners, nationwide	2–7 days

These are typical times after pickup, not guarantees. Weather, festivals and courier delays can extend them.

You do not choose the courier. Homakes assigns the logistics partner.
Delivery Partners are engaged by Homakes, not by you. Your responsibility ends when you hand over a correctly packed parcel.
Your serviceable area is shown in your Partner App. Orders from a non-serviceable pincode are cancelled centrally, with no penalty to you.
A customer may pay online or by cash on delivery. Where it is COD, the Delivery Partner collects the cash - never you. You are paid through your weekly settlement either way.
Never accept cash, UPI or any direct payment from a customer yourself. Doing so is grounds for suspension.
Delivery is confirmed by OTP. Once the customer shares the OTP with the Delivery Partner, the order is complete and no refund can be claimed after that point.
You can follow an order's status in the Partner App until it is delivered. If something looks stuck, tell Homakes rather than contacting the courier yourself.

9. Shipping Charges

Shipping is calculated on the higher of actual weight or volumetric weight.
Volumetric weight is what the parcel's size would weigh if it were full. A large, light parcel is charged on its size, not what the scales say - so a big box of feather-light crochet can cost more to send than a small heavy jar. Use the smallest box that packs safely.
Charges are applied per the shipping plan you selected at onboarding.
Shipping is [paid by the customer at checkout / built into your price], per that plan.
The shipping charge for an order is shown before you accept it, and again on your settlement statement (Seller Policies, Section 14).
Do not inflate shipping to disguise your product price - that is fee avoidance (Seller Policies, Section 19).
Return freight on an RTO caused by your error - wrong item, poor packing, wrong pickup address - is recovered from your payout (Section 10).
Where an order ships in more than one box, each box is charged separately. Pack into one box wherever you safely can.

10. Failed Delivery & RTO

Non-serviceable pincodes are cancelled centrally. No penalty to you.
Return to Origin (RTO): undelivered shipments come back in 4–5 working days.
Common causes: the customer was unavailable after repeated attempts, refused the parcel, gave a wrong or incomplete address, or the pincode became unserviceable.
Freight on an RTO caused by your error - wrong item, poor packing, wrong pickup address - is recovered from your payout.
Freight on an RTO caused by the customer or the courier is not charged to you.
When the parcel comes back, check it before you restock. Anything damaged, opened or past its shelf life must not be relisted or resent.
Food and perishables that come back on an RTO cannot be resold. Several days in transit means the shelf life you declared no longer holds.
If the parcel does not reach you within 4–5 working days of the RTO being raised, tell Homakes - do not chase the courier yourself.
Never re-send an RTO parcel directly to the customer. If they want the order again, they place a fresh order through Homakes.

11. Who Pays for Damage

Situation	Who bears it
Damage caused by inadequate packing	You
Damage by the courier where you packed to these guidelines	Homakes / logistics partner
Damage after the customer received the parcel	Customer
Spoilage inside the stated shelf life	You
Leakage that ruins other items in the parcel	You
Wrong item, missing item or short quantity	You
Non-delivery where there is no proof of dispatch	You
Courier or weather delay	Homakes / logistics partner
Loss in transit after a recorded pickup scan	Homakes / logistics partner
Natural variation in handmade goods, where your listing said so	Customer

Your packing photograph and the pickup scan are what decide most of these. Take both on every order.

About this document

These Delivery Guidelines are part of the Homakes Seller Policies (Sections 11 and 12) and are binding in the same way. They cover packing, pickup, shipping and delivery for all four modules.

For refund liability and dispute handling, see the Refund & Disputes tab. For the legal agreement, see the Terms of Use tab.

Homakes Ventures LLP
A-31, Kamdenu Layout, B Narayanapura, Dooravani Nagar Post, Bangalore, Karnataka 560016
contact@homakes.com · +91 7411147878

HOMAKES | Empowering Homes

Last updated: 14-Sep-2026 · Version: 1.02

Index

When You Cancel an Order
When a Refund Can Be Claimed - and When It Cannot
When a Customer Raises a Dispute
Evidence You Must Keep
Disputes You Pay For
Disputes You Do Not Pay For
Return Windows & Payout Holds
Late Delivery on Occasion-Dated Orders
Non-Delivery
Penalties & Deductions
Non-Returnable Items
How Refunds Are Recovered
Payments Taken Outside Homakes
Escalation

1. When You Cancel an Order

Cancel immediately and notify Homakes. Never let an order lapse - an unaccepted order auto-cancels and still counts against you.
Every cancellation counts against your cancellation rate (Seller Policies, Section 20) and may carry a penalty. Cancelling at the last minute, after the customer has been waiting, is treated more seriously.
Cancelling after pickup has been scheduled also makes you liable for the wasted logistics run.
Tell the customer why, through Homakes messaging. A customer who understands what happened is far less likely to raise a complaint.
If you have underpriced an item, cancel and relist. Do not renegotiate the price with the customer.
Cancel rather than send something different. Substituting an ingredient, colour, size or flavour without the customer agreeing first is a wrong-item case, and costs you more than a cancellation.
Cancel rather than miss a stated date. On an occasion-dated order, a cancellation costs you far less than a late-delivery refund with freight (Section 8).
You do not pay for a cancellation caused by Homakes or by a non-serviceable pincode.

2. When a Refund Can Be Claimed - and When It Cannot

A customer may claim a refund in these cases:

Wrong or missing items in the order
Tampered food or damaged packaging at the time of delivery
Non-delivery caused by an error on your side or the platform's
>Materially different from your listing - the item received is not what the photos and description showed
Spoiled or unsafe inside the shelf life you declared
Damaged in transit
Missing a stated occasion date, on the conditions in Section 8

Whether you bear the cost depends on the cause - see Sections 5 and 6.

The OTP rule

Once the customer shares the delivery OTP with the Delivery Partner, the order is treated as successfully completed. No refund is issued after that point.

This protects you. It also means the condition of the parcel at handover is what counts - so pack correctly, and photograph every sealed parcel before pickup.

The OTP rule does not cover something the customer could not have seen at handover - food that turns out to be spoiled, or a sealed item that is faulty inside. Those are judged on the ordinary rules in Sections 5 and 6.

Reporting window

A customer must raise the issue within the return window for that module - 24 hours for Eat Fresh and Food Products, 7 days for Crafts & Decors and Home & Body Care (Section 7). Anything raised after that is not entertained.

Approved refunds reach the customer in 5–7 business days, and are deducted from your payout for that week where the fault was yours.

3. When a Customer Raises a Dispute

You are notified in the Partner App and by email when a case is opened against your order.
You must respond within 3 days. No response closes the case against you automatically.
Send your evidence with your response - your packing photograph, the pickup record, and anything else from Section 4. A response without evidence rarely changes the outcome.
Homakes reviews the customer's unboxing video, your listing, and your packing photograph before deciding.
Homakes' determination on refund liability is binding for platform purposes, and does not affect either party's rights in law.
If you disagree with the outcome>, you may contest it within 15 days - see Section 14.
Homakes may escalate a case early for seller inactivity, refusal of service, harassment, or case manipulation.
Deal with the case through Homakes, not the customer. Do not pressure a customer to withdraw a complaint, offer money to close it, or contact them outside the platform about it. Doing so is treated as case manipulation.
Your payout for that order is held until the case closes.

4. Evidence You Must Keep

A photograph of every sealed parcel before pickup. This is the single most useful thing you can do.
For a multi-item order, photograph the contents before you seal as well. It is the only way to answer a missing-item claim.
Your listing as published - description, weight, photos.
Batch and manufacture dates for food and cosmetics.
The pickup record - the scan the Delivery Partner makes at handover is your proof of dispatch.
Any chat with the customer, kept inside Homakes messaging.

How long to keep it. Keep your evidence until the return window closes and the order has settled - 30 days is a safe rule. Store photographs on your own device, not with the customer's name or address attached (Seller Policies, Section 21).

An unboxing video from the customer is mandatory for all damage, missing-item and wrong-item claims. Claims without one are rejected.

How to stay protected

Most disputes are decided on whether you did these things. Do them on every order:

Dispatch within your stated processing time. A verbal agreement in chat to send later does not change the date Homakes measures you against - your published processing time does.
Hand over only to the assigned Delivery Partner, so there is a pickup record.
Send only to the address recorded on Homakes. If a customer gives you a different address in chat, do not use it - that is a common fraud pattern. Cancel and ask them to reorder with the correct address.
Pack to the Delivery Guidelines, and photograph the sealed parcel.
Keep your listing accurate. Most "not as described" cases are lost because the photo or description overstated the item.
Keep every conversation inside Homakes messaging. A promise made on WhatsApp cannot be produced as evidence, and a customer can say anything about what was agreed.
Keep your account in good standing. An open policy violation weakens your position in any case.

5. Disputes You Pay For

Where the fault is yours, the refund is deducted from your payout for that cycle.

Situation	What you bear
Wrong item sent	Full refund
Missing item or short quantity	Refund for the missing part, or the full order
An unagreed substitution - a different ingredient, colour, size or flavour	Full refund, treated as wrong item
Spoiled or unsafe inside the stated shelf life	Full refund
Damage caused by inadequate packing	Full refund
Leakage that ruins other items in the parcel	Refund for the whole order
Materially different from your listing or photos	Refund plus return freight
Late dispatch by you	Refund where it caused the loss
A missed date on an occasion-dated order (Section 8)	Refund plus freight
RTO caused by a wrong or outdated pickup address	Return freight
Non-delivery where there is no proof of dispatch (Section 9)	Full refund
Unlicensed or non-compliant product	Full refund, and the listing is removed

A missing certification, a labelling failure or a prohibited claim also carries consequences beyond the refund - see Seller Policies, Section 22.

6. Disputes You Do Not Pay For

Situation	Who bears it
Courier damage where you packed to the Delivery Guidelines	Homakes / logistics partner
Loss in transit after a recorded pickup scan	Homakes / logistics partner
Courier or weather delay	Homakes / logistics partner
Non-serviceable pincode cancellation	Homakes
A cancellation caused by Homakes	Homakes
Damage, misuse or spoilage after the customer received it	Customer
Taste, colour, shade, fragrance or size preference where your listing was accurate	Customer
Natural variation in handmade goods - weave, grain, tone and finish differ piece to piece and are not defects, provided your listing said so	Customer
Customer unavailable or refusing delivery without cause	Customer
Complaints about the shipping fee itself	Not refundable
Items returned without an approved return request	Not refundable
A complaint raised after the delivery OTP was shared, about something visible at handover	Not refundable
A complaint raised after the return window closed (Section 7)	Not refundable

Note on the OTP rule. Sharing the OTP closes anything the customer could see at the door. It does not close a defect they could not have seen - spoiled food, or a fault inside a sealed item. Those are judged on the ordinary rules in Section 5.

Payment taken outside Homakes checkout is not covered at all. You bear the whole loss - see Section 13.

7. Return Windows & Payout Holds

Your payout is held until the return window closes. Once it closes with no complaint raised, the order settles in the next weekly run (Seller Policies, Section 14).

Module	Window	Returnable?
Eat Fresh	24 hours from delivery	No - refund or replacement only
Food Products	24 hours from delivery	No - refund or replacement only, on hygiene grounds
Crafts & Decors	7 days from delivery	Yes, unused and in original packaging
Home & Body Care	7 days from delivery	Yes, unopened only

The window runs from delivery, not from dispatch.
A complaint raised after the window closes is not entertained (Section 6).
Where a case is opened inside the window, the payout stays held until the case closes, even if that takes longer than the window.
Where a return is approved, the item comes back to you through Homakes' logistics partner. Check it on arrival and tell Homakes if it is not as the customer described - a used, altered or substituted return can be challenged.
A returned item may not be relisted if it is damaged, opened, or past its shelf life (Delivery Guidelines, Section 10).

Approved refunds reach the customer in 5–7 business days.

8. Late Delivery on Occasion-Dated Orders

An order tied to a specific date - a festival, birthday, wedding or event - is treated differently from an ordinary late delivery.

A customer may claim a full refund for late delivery only where all three are true:

The item was ordered for a specific date or event, stated at the time of ordering.
The item is of no use after that date.
You did not dispatch within your stated processing time, or within a date you agreed in Homakes messaging.

If all three are met, you bear the refund in full, including original and return freight. If you dispatched on time and the courier caused the delay, you do not.

"Of no use after that date" is judged on the item. A Rakhi, a wedding hamper, a birthday cake or a named festive sweet box loses its purpose once the date passes. An ordinary jar of pickle bought before Diwali does not.

Before you accept an occasion-dated order

Publish an order cut-off date on every occasion-linked listing (Seller Policies, Section 5). It is the clearest protection you have.
Set a processing time you can meet at your busiest, not your quietest.
Reduce your published capacity during festival season rather than accepting orders you cannot fulfil.
Allow for transit. A 7-day delivery window means a Rakhi order must leave well before Rakhi, not on the day.
Check the delivery date on the orderbefore you accept it. Once accepted, it is yours to meet.

If you cannot meet the date

Cancel at once and tell the customer. A cancellation costs you a rate hit and possibly a small penalty. A missed occasion date costs you the whole order plus freight. Cancelling early is always the cheaper choice.

Do not agree a later date in chat hoping it will be accepted - if the item is useless by then, the refund still falls on you.

Keep your dispatch confirmation. It is your evidence that the delay sat with the courier, not with you.

9. Non-Delivery

A non-delivery case is raised when a customer pays but never receives the order. You are liable where either applies:

There is no proof the order was dispatched - no pickup scan, no handover record.
The order was not sent to the address recorded on Homakes.

You are not liable where the order was correctly handed to the Delivery Partner and the loss happened in transit.

The pickup scan is everything

The scan the Delivery Partner makes at handover is what proves the order left you. If the parcel does not scan, tell Homakes before the rider leaves. Without it, a parcel that goes missing is treated as never dispatched, and the refund falls on you.

Always hand over to the assigned Delivery Partner. Never arrange your own courier for a Homakes order - it removes your proof of dispatch and makes any loss yours.

Marked delivered, but not received

Sometimes a parcel is marked delivered and the customer says it never arrived. That is between Homakes and the logistics partner, not you - provided you dispatched correctly and the pickup was scanned. Send us your evidence and let us take it up with the courier.

Do not go to the customer's address yourself to check or to deliver a replacement. Report it to Homakes.

Address changes

If a customer asks you to send to a different address, do not do it - not even if they message you the new address and confirm it. Cancel and ask them to reorder with the correct address. An order sent anywhere other than the address on Homakes is a non-delivery case you will lose, and it is a known fraud pattern.

10. Penalties & Deductions

Separate from refunds, a penalty may be deducted from your payout for:

Late or missed orders, verified complaints, wrong or missing items
Cancelling an order after pickup has been scheduled
Poor packaging
Missed or failed pickups
Sudden unavailability without notice
Repeated hygiene or quality failures
Listing something that had to be removed for breaching the Seller Policies

How penalties work

A penalty is [₹X or X% of order value], depending on what happened.
It is applied per incident, and is separate from any refund - a wrong item can cost you both.
Every penalty appears as a line on your settlement statement, with the order number against it.
Where deductions exceed the payout due, the balance carries to the next cycle (Section 12).
A first, minor lapse will usually attract a warning rather than a penalty. Repeated lapses will not.

If you think a penalty is wrong

Raise it within 30 days of the statement date - email contact@homakes.com with the order number and what you think happened (Section 14). If the penalty is reversed, the amount is released in the next settlement run.

11. Non-Returnable Items

Non-returnable means the item does not come back to you. It does not mean a refund can never be claimed - where the fault is yours, a refund or replacement still applies (Sections 2 and 5).

Cooked food and any perishable item
Packaged food, once dispatched - on hygiene grounds
Opened cosmetics and personal care products
Made-to-order and personalised items - anything carrying a name, date, monogram, portrait or custom text - unless damaged or defective on delivery
Items altered, washed or used by the customer after delivery
Items returned without their original packaging, tags or parts
Anything returned after the return window closed (Section 7)
Anything returned without an approved return request

What this means for you

For a non-returnable item, a customer with a valid claim gets a refund or replacement - the item stays with them.
Personalised work is your strongest protection. A customer cannot change their mind on a name they chose. Make sure your listing shows a finished personalised example and states what you need from them (Seller Policies, Section 6).
Check the personalisation with the customer before you start - spelling, date, size, colour. A mistake you make is yours; a detail they gave wrongly is theirs.

12. How Refunds Are Recovered

A refund caused by your error is deducted from your next weekly settlement.
Homakes refunds the customer first, then recovers the amount from you. The customer is not left waiting while a case is decided.
Your settlement statement itemises every deduction - refunds, RTO freight, penalties, seller-funded discounts - each against its order number.
If your balance is insufficient, the amount carries to the following cycle. It is not written off.
Where deductions run ahead of your earnings for several cycles, Homakes may pause new orders until the balance clears.
A refund the customer receives includes what they paid for shipping. Where the fault was yours, that is recovered from you too.
Raise any settlement dispute within 30 days of the statement date (Section 14). After that, the statement is treated as accepted.
If a deduction is reversed - a case decided in your favour, or a penalty withdrawn - the amount is released in the next settlement run.

Settlement runs weekly, every Wednesday. See Seller Policies, Section 14 for the full payout rules.

13. Payments Taken Outside Homakes

A transaction settled outside Homakes checkout carries no protection at all. If you take payment directly - cash, UPI, bank transfer - you absorb the entire loss, and taking direct payment is itself grounds for suspension.

What this covers

Accepting cash, UPI or a bank transfer from a customer yourself. On a cash-on-delivery order the Delivery Partner collects the cash, never you.
Asking a customer to cancel and pay you directly instead.
Settling a price difference on a custom or bespoke order outside Homakes.
Taking a deposit or advance before an order is placed on Homakes.
Putting your phone number, UPI ID, social media handle or website in a listing, a photo, a message or inside a parcel.
Continuing to sell to a Homakes customer off-platform after their first order.

What you lose

No dispute protection. If the customer does not pay, or claims they did, Homakes cannot help you.
No delivery cover. A parcel lost or damaged outside Homakes logistics is your loss entirely.
No record. There is no invoice, no order trail and nothing to show a tax authority.
Your account. Fee avoidance is grounds for suspension, and repeated instances for permanent removal (Seller Policies, Section 22).

If a customer asks you to deal directly, decline politely and tell Homakes. Customers who ask are often the same ones who later dispute the payment - and you would have no protection at all.

14. Escalation

Respond to the case within 3 days of being notified, with your evidence (Section 4).
If you disagree with the outcome, email partners@homakes.com or call +91 7411147878 (Monday to Saturday, 10:00 AM – 7:00 PM) with your Partner ID and the order number. Do this within 15 days of the decision.
No resolution within 48 hours → write to the Grievance Officer below, subject line "Grievance – Partner".

Settlement and penalty disputes follow the same route, but must be raised within 30 days of the statement date (Sections 10 and 12).

Complaints are acknowledged within 48 hours and resolved within 15 days, as required by the Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020.

Nothing here prevents you from approaching a consumer forum or any other authority where the law gives you that right.

About this document

Refund & Disputes - how refunds, cancellations and disputes are decided, and who bears the cost.

This document is part of the Homakes Seller Policies (Section 16) and works alongside the payout rules in Section 14. It is binding in the same way.

For packing and delivery obligations, see the Delivery Guidelines tab. For the legal agreement - liability, indemnity, arbitration, governing law - see the Terms of Use tab.

Homakes Ventures LLP
No. A-31, Kamdenu Layout, B Narayanapura, Dooravani Nagar Post, Bangalore, Karnataka 560016
partners@homakes.com · +91 7411147878

HOMAKES | Empowering Homes

Last updated: 14-Sep-2026 · Version: 1.02

Index

About This Policy
Your Two Roles
What We Collect From You
How We Use Your Information
Consent and Withdrawal
What Is Publicly Visible
Sharing and Disclosure
Customer Data You Receive
How We Protect Your Information
How Long We Keep It
Your Rights
Cookies and Tracking
Third-Party Links
Children
Updates to This Policy
Grievance Redressal

1. About This Policy

This Privacy Policy explains what personal data Homakes Ventures LLP collects from you as a Partner, why we collect it, who we share it with, and what rights you have over it.

It is written under the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 and the Information Technology Act, 2000 and the rules made under them.

This policy covers Partners - home chefs, food product makers, crafts and décor makers, and home and body care makers, across all four Homakes modules. If you also buy on Homakes, the customer-facing Privacy Policy applies to that activity.

It covers your use of the Homakes Partner App, the Homakes website, and any Homakes WhatsApp group, training session or support channel you take part in as a Partner.

Read it alongside the Partner Terms of Useand the Seller Policies. Together they govern your use of Homakes.

Because you make things at home, some of what we collect concerns your home. Your premises address, photographs of your kitchen or workspace, and records of any inspection we carry out are part of your Partner record. Section 3 sets out what we collect and Section 6 what becomes public. Your residential address is never shown to customers.

2. Your Two Roles

Under the DPDP Act you have two different roles on Homakes, and it matters which one you are in.

Role	When it applies	What it means
Data Principal	For your own personal data - your name, Aadhaar, PAN, bank details, address	Homakes is the Data Fiduciary. You have the rights set out in Section 11.
Data Fiduciary	For the customer data you receive to fulfil an order - name, address, phone	You are responsible for it. Your obligations are in Section 8.

Most of this policy is about the first role. Section 8 is about the second, and it is the part that carries liability for you.

In plain terms: Homakes looks after your information. You look after your customers' information. If something goes wrong with a customer's details while they are with you, that is yours to answer for - not ours.

If someone helps you

Your household members may help you make and pack orders, and you may have a declared production partner (Seller Policies, Section 2). You remain responsible for customer data even when someone else handles it. If a helper sees an order slip, copies an address, or uses your phone, that is still your responsibility.

Keep order details away from anyone who does not need them, and never let another person use your Partner account.

3. What We Collect From You

Category	What it includes
Identity	Your name, Aadhaar, PAN, passport-size photograph
Contact	Phone number, WhatsApp number, email, residential and premises address, state, city, area, pincode
Social media	Instagram, Facebook and YouTube links you choose to share at onboarding
Financial	Bank account details, cancelled cheque or passbook page, GSTIN or GST Enrolment Number, tax records
Licence and compliance	FSSAI registration or licence and its expiry, cosmetic manufacturing licence, AYUSH licence, BIS certification, artisan or GI certificates
Premises	Photographs of your kitchen or workspace, address proof, inspection records, sample and lab test results
What you make	Your product categories, dishes and cuisines, craft style, production capacity, prior experience, and where else you sell
Store	Store name, logo, banner, product listings, photographs and descriptions you upload
Production partners	The name and details of anyone outside your household who helps make your products, where you have declared them
Transaction	Orders, cancellations, refunds, penalties, settlement statements, payout history
Performance	Ratings, reviews, complaints, acceptance and cancellation rates, dispatch timing, policy violations
Communications	Messages with customers and with Homakes support, WhatsApp group messages, and their timestamps
Device and usage	IP address, device type and identifier, operating system, app version, crash reports, activity logs
Location	Your pickup location, and precise device location where you have allowed it

Some of this we are required to collect by law - identity and tax records for TDS and TCS, licence details for food and cosmetics. Without them we cannot onboard you.

Location. We use your pickup location to assign a Delivery Partner. Precise device location is collected only if you allow it, and you can withdraw that at any time in your device settings.

Optional information. Social media links, your story, work samples and photographs of you are optional. You can sell without them. We only use them where you have agreed - for example to feature you in a Homakes campaign (Section 4).

Someone else's data. If you give us information about another person - a production partner, a helper, someone appearing in a photograph - you must have their consent first.

4. How We Use Your Information

To onboard and verify you - checking your identity, address, bank details and licences.
To run your store - publishing listings, taking orders, arranging pickup and delivery.
To pay you - calculating Platform Charges, deductions and settlements, and depositing to your bank account.
To meet our tax obligations - deducting and depositing TDS and TCS, and issuing your statements.
To set your Platform Charge rate - your order volume and your consistency on quality and timing determine your share (Seller Policies, Section 13).
To rank and recommend your products - your ratings, performance and listing details affect where your products appear in search and on the home screen.
To handle disputes - reviewing evidence, deciding refund liability, and responding to grievances.
To keep the platform safe - preventing fraud, detecting reselling and policy violations, and investigating complaints.
To measure your performance - ratings, dispatch timing, complaint rates, and the standards in Seller Policies, Section 20.
To support you - answering your questions, and running training and guidance.
To connect you with vendors - where you ask us to introduce you to a supplier for raw materials, ingredients or packaging, we share only what is needed to make the introduction.
To improve the platform - understanding how Partners use the app so we can make it work better.
To comply with the law - responding to lawful requests from FSSAI, tax authorities, regulators, courts and law enforcement.

Promoting you

Homakes markets Partners through social media, reels, maker spotlights, featured stories and seasonal campaigns. Where you have agreed, we may use your store name, your name, your photograph, your product photographs and your story for that purpose.

This is optional. You can sell on Homakes without appearing in any campaign, and you can withdraw at any time by emailing contact@homakes.com. We will stop using your material in new marketing within a reasonable period - campaigns already published may take longer to come down.

Automated decisions

Some things happen automatically - listings auto-pause when a licence expires, unaccepted orders auto-cancel, and performance metrics are calculated by the system. A suspension or deactivation is reviewed by a person before it takes effect, and you may contest any decision within 15 days (Seller Policies, Section 22).

We do not sell your personal data.

We ask for your consent at onboarding, with a notice telling you what we collect and why. The notice is available in English and, where offered, in your own language.
Your consent is specific to the purposes in Section 4. We will ask again before using your data for anything materially different.
You may withdraw your consent at any time - email contact@homakes.com, or delete your account (Section 11). Withdrawing is as easy as giving it.
We will act on a withdrawal within 7 working days.
Withdrawing does not affect processing that already happened, and does not stop us keeping what the law requires us to keep (Section 10).
You may give or manage consent through a registered Consent Manager where one is available to you.

You can withdraw some things without closing your account

What you withdraw	What happens
Marketing messages	You stop receiving them. You still get service messages about orders, payouts and policy changes - those you cannot opt out of.
Appearing in Homakes campaigns	We stop using your name, photograph and story in new marketing (Section 4). Your store carries on as normal.
Precise device location	Turn it off in your device settings. Pickup still works from your registered address.
Your social media links	Remove them in the Partner App. Nothing else changes.
The Homakes WhatsApp group	Leave the group. You will still get announcements by email and in the Partner App.

Withdrawing everything

Withdrawing consent to the data we need to run your store means we can no longer run it. Identity, bank, tax and licence details are required by law or essential to the service - without them your listings go offline and your account closes.

Before that happens: complete or cancel your open orders, and your final settlement follows the last return window. We will tell you what this means before we act on it, so nothing comes as a surprise.

6. What Is Publicly Visible

Some of what you give us appears publicly on your storefront. Customers, other Partners and search engines can see it.

Public	Not public
Your store name, logo and banner	Aadhaar, PAN and any government ID
Your product listings, photographs and descriptions	Bank account details and tax records
Your city or area	Your full residential address
Your store rating and customer reviews	Your phone number, WhatsApp number and email
Your replies to reviews	Your settlement statements and earnings
Your FSSAI number, where you sell food	Performance metrics and any warnings
Your cosmetic licence number, where you sell personal care	Photographs of your kitchen or workspace
Any About text or story you publish	Inspection records and lab test results
Any certificate you choose to display - Handloom Mark, Craft Mark, GI	Your production partners and helpers
Your name and photograph, only where you agree to appear in a campaign (Section 4)	Your identity documents and passport photograph

Displaying your FSSAI number is a legal requirement under food safety law, not a choice. The same applies to a cosmetic manufacturing licence number where one is required.

Think before you publish. Anything you put in your About text, store name or product photographs is public, and may be copied or indexed elsewhere.

Be careful what your photographs show

Because you work from home, a product photograph can reveal more than you intend. Before you upload, check the background for:

Post, parcels or documents showing your name or address
Your house number, gate or street sign
Other people, especially children - you need their consent, and a parent's consent for a child
A phone screen, a bill, or anything else with personal details on it

Your product labels carry your name and address by law (Seller Policies, Section 7), so a photograph of a finished pack may show them. That is normal and unavoidable - but do not add your phone number, and never put it in a listing or a photograph (Seller Policies, Section 5).

We share with	What, and why
Customers	Your store name, city, rating, listings and FSSAI number - so they can decide what to buy
Delivery Partners and logistics partners	Your pickup address, phone number and order details - so the parcel can be collected
Payment gateways and banks	Your bank and settlement details - so you can be paid
Tax authorities	Your PAN, GSTIN and transaction values - for TDS and TCS filings
Regulators	Your licence details and premises records, where FSSAI, Legal Metrology, BIS or a State authority requires them
Vendors we introduce you to	Only your name and contact details, and only where you ask for the introduction. What you share with them afterwards is between you and them.
Service providers	Hosting, KYC verification, analytics, communications - working on our instructions only
Auditors and professional advisers	Records needed for audit, accounting or legal advice
Law enforcement and courts	Where required by law, a court order, or to investigate fraud or a safety risk

Service providers act on our instructions and may not use your data for their own purposes.
Where we merge, restructure or transfer the business, Partner data may transfer with it. We will tell you.
We may publish aggregated figures - how many Partners we have, average order values, category trends. These do not identify you.
We may share anonymised data with academic or research institutions studying home-based enterprise or women's economic participation. Anonymised means it can no longer identify you.
We do not share your data with advertisers for their own marketing.
We do not sell your personal data to anyone.

When a complaint goes to a regulator

If a customer complains to a consumer forum, FSSAI or another authority about an order, we must give them your details as the seller. Under the Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020, a marketplace has to identify the seller behind a transaction. We will tell you when this happens.

Where your data is held

Your data is stored on servers in India. Some of our service providers may process it outside India; where they do, we require them to protect it to the standard this policy sets, and we comply with any restriction the Central Government places on transfers under the DPDP Act.

8. Customer Data You Receive

When you accept an order you receive the customer's name, delivery address and phone number. For that data, you are an independent Data Fiduciary under the DPDP Act - the law applies to you directly, not only through Homakes.

You may also receive their personalisation details - a name to engrave, a message to write, a date. Treat those the same way.

You must:

Use it only to fulfil that order.
Delete it once the order and its return window have closed. That includes order slips, photographs of labels, and anything you wrote down.
Keep it secure while you hold it - do not leave order slips lying about, and lock the device you use for Homakes.
Forward any customer request about their data - access, correction, erasure or a complaint - to contact@homakes.com within 7 days. Do not ignore it.
Tell us immediately at contact@homakes.com if customer data is lost or exposed - a lost phone, a shared screenshot, an account someone else got into. Reporting quickly protects both you and the customer, and the law requires the breach to be notified.
Take responsibility for anyone who helps you. If a household member or a declared production partner sees an order, it is still your responsibility (Section 2).

You must not:

Save it to a personal list, spreadsheet, WhatsApp broadcast or CRM.
Use it for marketing, offers or a mailing list.
Share it with anyone - not a helper, not a family member, not another Partner.
Contact the customer once the order has closed.
Post a customer's name, address, photograph or order details anywhere publicly - including in a photograph of a packed parcel, or a screenshot shared in a WhatsApp group.
Save the customer's number to your phone, or message them on WhatsApp.
Build a list of "regular customers" to approach directly. That is both a data breach and off-platform selling (Seller Policies, Section 19).

Things that count, even though they feel harmless

Photographing a labelled parcel and sharing it - the label carries the customer's name and address.
Posting a screenshot of a nice order or a good review that shows the customer's details.
Saving a number "just in case" the customer orders again.
Messaging a customer on WhatsApp to confirm something, rather than through Homakes.
Putting a thank-you note with your number in the parcel.

Every one of these is a breach of this section, and the first two are also public disclosure of someone else's personal data.

Misusing customer data is grounds for immediate suspension (Seller Policies, Section 22), and you indemnify Homakes for any penalty arising from it (Partner Terms of Use, Section 10).

9. How We Protect Your Information

We use encryption in transit, access controls, and restrict internal access to staff who need it.
Payment and bank data is handled through PCI-DSS compliant> payment partners.
Identity documents are stored separately from your public store profile, and are not visible to customers or other Partners.
We log access to Partner records, so we can see who looked at what.
If a breach affects your data>, we will notify you and the Data Protection Board of India> as the DPDP Act requires.

Your part

Keep your password private, and use a different one from your other accounts.
Never share an OTP with anyone.> No one from Homakes will ever ask you for an OTP, PIN or password - not on a call, not on WhatsApp, not in person.
Use a screen lock on the phone you run your Homakes account from.
Do not let anyone else use your Partner account - not a family member, not a helper. You are responsible for everything done on it (Partner Terms of Use, Section 5).
Tell us at once if you think someone has got into your account, or if the phone you use for Homakes is lost or stolen. Email contact@homakes.com or call +91 9972939093>.
Sign out on any shared or borrowed device.

Common scams to watch for

Partners are targeted. Be suspicious of anyone who:

Calls claiming to be from Homakes and asks for an OTP>, your PIN, or your bank details.
Says your account will be suspended unless you pay a fee> or "verify" immediately. Homakes never asks a Partner to pay to keep an account open.>
Sends a link asking you to log in or update your bank details. Check it is a homakes.com address> before you enter anything.
Offers to increase your earnings share, boost your ranking, or remove a bad review for money.
Poses as a customer and asks you to send to a different address, or to accept payment directly (Refund & Disputes, Sections 4 and 13).

If in doubt, hang up and call us on the number in Seller Policies, Section 23.> We would far rather answer a call than deal with a lost account.

No system is perfectly secure. We take reasonable safeguards but cannot guarantee absolute security.

10. How Long We Keep It

What	How long
Account and store information	While your account is active
Identity and KYC documents	While active, then [X] years as tax and anti-money-laundering rules require
Transaction, tax and settlement records	[8] years from the end of the relevant financial year, as tax and company law requires
Licence and inspection records	While active, and [X] years after, as food safety and licensing law requires
Dispute records and evidence	Until the case closes, then [3] years for appeals and legal claims
Messages with customers and support	[2] years, for dispute and safety purposes
Ratings, reviews and performance records	While active. Reviews stay on the platform after your account closes, without your contact details.
Product listings and photographs	Removed when your account closes. Campaign material already published may take longer to come down (Section 4).
Device and usage logs	[X] months, for security and troubleshooting
Customer data you hold	You delete it once the order and its return window close (Section 8)

Partner records are kept longer than customer records. That is because tax, food safety and company law require it - not a choice we make. Closing your account does not erase a tax record.

When we no longer need your data, we delete it or anonymise it so it can no longer identify you. Anonymised data is no longer personal data and may be retained for research and reporting (Section 7).

11. Your Rights

As a Data Principal under the DPDP Act, you have the right to:

Access - a summary of the personal data we hold about you and how we process it.
Correction, completion and updating - to fix anything inaccurate or incomplete.
Erasure - to have your data deleted, except what we must keep by law.
Grievance - to complain about how we handle your data (Section 16).
Nomination - to nominate another person to exercise these rights on your behalf if you die or become incapacitated.
Withdraw consent - at any time (Section 5).

Nominating someone

You may nominate a family member or another person you trust to act for you if you die or can no longer act for yourself. Email contact@homakes.com with their name and contact details.

This matters if selling on Homakes is part of your household income. A nominee can ask us about your account, close it, and deal with any settlement still due. Without a nomination, we may not be able to release a pending payout to your family.

How to exercise them

Update most details yourself in the Partner App. For anything else, email contact@homakes.com from your registered email, with your name, mobile number and Partner ID. We respond within 7 working days.

There is no charge for making a request.

If we cannot act on a request - because the law requires us to keep the data, or because we cannot verify it is you - we will tell you why, in writing.

Closing your account and deleting your data

Email contact@homakes.com from your registered email with your name, mobile number and Partner ID. Processed within 7 working days.

Complete or cancel your open orders first - your final settlement follows the last return window.
Your listings and store come down.
Transaction and tax records are retained as the law requires (Section 10).
Customer reviews stay on the platform, without your contact details.
Closing your account is not reversible. You would need to register again, and your store name may not be available.

You must give us true and accurate information, and not make a false or frivolous complaint. The Act allows penalties for that.

12. Cookies and Tracking

We use cookies, pixel tags, SDKs and similar tools to keep you signed in, remember your settings, measure traffic, and understand how the platform is used.

Type	What it does
Essential	Keeps you signed in, keeps your session secure, makes the Partner App work. These cannot be switched off.
Preference	Remembers your language and settings.
Analytics	Tells us how Partners use the app, and where it is going wrong, so we can fix it.

You can manage cookies in your browser or device settings. Disabling some will stop parts of the platform working - you may not stay signed in, and the Partner App may not function fully.

In the Partner App, similar tools run as part of the app itself. You can control app permissions - location, camera, notifications - in your phone's settings. Turning off camera access will stop you uploading product photographs.

We do not use advertising or tracking cookies on the Partner side, and we do not track you across other websites for advertising.

13. Third-Party Links

Homakes may link to other websites and services - a vendor we introduce you to, a payment page, a training resource, a government portal such as FoSCoS or the GST site. We do not control their privacy practices and are not responsible for them. Read their policies before you share anything.

Where we introduce you to a vendor for raw materials, ingredients or packaging, anything you share with that vendor is between you and them (Partner Terms of Use, Section 11).

If you share your Instagram, Facebook or YouTube links with us, or post about your Homakes store on your own accounts, those platforms have their own privacy policies and we do not control them. Anything you post there is public and outside this policy.

Be careful not to publish a customer's name, address or order details on your own social media - that is a breach of Section 8 whether or not Homakes can see it.

WhatsApp groups

Homakes uses WhatsApp for day-to-day coordination and announcements. In a WhatsApp group your phone number is visible to every other member. WhatsApp's own privacy policy applies to those messages, not this one.

Join only groups run by Homakes. If you are added to a group claiming to be Homakes and you are not sure, check with us before sharing anything.

Anyone who helps you with your account

If you use an agent, a consultant or an outside service to set up your listings, edit your photographs or manage your account, you are responsible for what they do with your information and your customers'. Homakes has no relationship with them, and giving them your login is a breach of Section 9.

14. Children

You must be 18 or older to register as a Homakes Partner. We do not knowingly collect personal data from anyone under 18 as a Partner, and we do not track children or direct advertising at them.

Under the DPDP Act, processing a child's personal data requires verifiable consent from a parent or guardian.

Children in your photographs

You work from home, so a child may appear in a photograph without you intending it. Before you upload:

Check the background of every product photograph for children.
If a child is in the picture on purpose - your own child modelling a crochet cap, for example - you must have the consent of their parent or guardian, and as a parent you are giving that consent yourself.
Do not upload a photograph of someone else's child without their parent's consent.
Never publish a child's name, school, or anything that identifies where they live.

The same applies to your store banner, your About text, and anything you share in a Homakes campaign.

Products made for children

Making products for children does not mean you are processing a child's data - you deal with the parent who orders. But if a customer gives you a child's name or age for a personalised item, treat it as customer data under Section 8: use it only for that order, and delete it once the order closes.

If we learn that we hold a child's data without proper consent, we delete it.

15. Updates to This Policy

We may update this policy to reflect changes in our practices, our technology or the law. Material changes are notified 15 days in advance by email, WhatsApp and in the Partner App, with the revision date shown. Minor corrections take effect on publication.

Where a change is required to comply with the law or a regulator's direction, it may take effect sooner, and we will tell you as soon as we can.

If a change means using your data for a materially new purpose, we will ask for your consent again rather than relying on this notice (Section 5).

The current version always appears on this page with its date and version number. Continuing to sell after the effective date means you accept it.

If you do not accept a material change, you may withdraw your consent or close your account before the effective date (Sections 5 and 11).

16. Grievance Redressal

For any question or complaint about how your data is handled, email partners@homakes.com or call +91 7411147878 (Monday to Saturday, 10:00 AM – 7:00 PM).

If it is not resolved, write to the Grievance Officer.

Grievance Officer
Abdul Rahim PA · Homakes Ventures LLP
No. A-31, Kamdenu Layout, B Narayanapura, Dooravani Nagar Post, Bangalore, Karnataka 560016
Email: grievance@homakes.com · Phone: +91 7411147878

Mark your email "Data Grievance – Partner" and include your name, mobile number and Partner ID so we can find your account.

Complaints are acknowledged within 48 hours and resolved within 15 days.

You must use this route first before complaining to the Data Protection Board - the DPDP Act expects you to give us the chance to put it right.

To report abuse, misuse of data, or a breach of this policy by anyone on Homakes, write to contact@homakes.com with the details. If another Partner or a customer has published your personal information, tell us at once and we will remove it.

If you are not satisfied with our response, you may complain to the Data Protection Board of India. Nothing here prevents you from approaching a consumer forum or any other authority where the law gives you that right.

About this document

Homakes Partner Privacy Policy - what we collect from you as a Partner, why, and what rights you have.

For your obligations towards customer data, see Section 8 above and Seller Policies, Section 21. For the legal position, see Terms of Use, Section 10. Customers are covered by the separate customer Privacy Policy.

This policy forms part of the Homakes Partner documents, alongside the Terms of Use, Seller Policies, Delivery Guidelines and Refund & Disputes. All are binding.

Homakes Ventures LLP
No. A-31, Kamdenu Layout, B Narayanapura, Dooravani Nagar Post, Bangalore, Karnataka 560016
partners@homakes.com · +91 7411147878

HOMAKES | Empowering Homes

Seller Policies

Index

1. Legal Recognition

2. Definitions

3. Acceptance & Scope

4. Role of the Platform

5. Your Eligibility & Account

6. Verification & Licences

7. Your Obligations as a Seller

8. Your Content & Licence to Homakes

9. Intellectual Property

10. Personal Data & Your Role as Data Fiduciary

11. Platform Charges & Settlement

12. Taxes

13. Your Representations & Warranties

14. Suspension, Termination & Exit

15. Disclaimer & Limitation of Liability

16. Indemnity

17. Force Majeure

18. Grievance Redressal & Dispute Resolution

19. Changes to These Terms

20. General

About this document

Index

1. Who Can Sell

2. The Made-at-Home Standard

What counts as made by you

What does not count

Hampers and gift boxes

Designs made with AI

Sourced inputs are fine - declare them

Helpers and production partners

3. Documents & Licences

Everyone submits

Your store logo and banner

Then, by what you make

FSSAI rules that trip people up

If you register for GST

4. What You Can and Cannot Sell

Open - list freely

Restricted - written approval required before listing

Banned - never, on any module

Products for children and babies

5. Listing Standards

6. Photo Requirements

Made-to-order and personalised items

Handmade variation

Photos you did not take

7. Labelling & Pack Declarations

All pre-packed goods

Food - additionally

Cosmetics - additionally

Toys and children's items

If something goes wrong with a batch

8. Claims You May Not Make

Claims you must be able to prove

9. Pricing & Custom Orders

10. Accepting & Fulfilling Orders

11. Packaging

12. Delivery

13. Platform Charges

14. Payouts

15. Taxes

16. Cancellations & Disputes

17. Ratings

18. Communication

Delivery Partners

Harassment - zero tolerance

19. Code of Conduct

Hygiene and safe working

Waste management

20. Performance Standards

If you fall below standard

If you do well

21. Customer Data & Content

22. What Gets You Suspended

23. Support & Raising a Complaint

Policy Changes

About this document

Index