Custom Set Commission Terms

1. What you are commissioning

A custom set is a made-to-order, one-of-one American Mahjong set produced to the artwork you approve at the moment of purchase. It is manufactured and hand-finished individually for you and is not stock merchandise.

Approval of the artwork shown at checkout is the specification for manufacture. Changes requested after approval may not be possible and, where possible, may carry additional cost and time.

2. Your artwork: ownership, permissions and indemnity

You represent and warrant that, for all artwork you submit, supply, direct or approve (the "Artwork"), you are either (a) the sole owner of all rights in it, (b) authorised in writing by the owner of those rights, or (c) otherwise legally entitled to use it, and that this covers every element incorporated in it, including photographs, illustrations, logos, brand names, trademarks, service marks, trade dress, team, school or company insignia, characters, fonts, names, likenesses and any other third-party material.

Where the Artwork contains a name, logo, trademark or other material belonging to a business, organisation or person other than you, you confirm that you have obtained that rights holder's permission both (i) to have it reproduced on a manufactured product and (ii) to grant Little Sparrow Mahjong the marketing and publicity licence in section 3. On request you will provide written evidence of that permission.

Where Little Sparrow Mahjong has assisted with drawing, arranging, recolouring, cleaning up or otherwise preparing your Artwork, that assistance is provided at your direction and on your instructions. The resulting Artwork remains yours and is treated as your Artwork for the purposes of these terms. Our assistance does not constitute a rights clearance, a copyright or trademark search, or any assurance that the Artwork may lawfully be used.

You accept full responsibility and accountability for the Artwork. You agree to indemnify, defend and hold harmless Little Sparrow Mahjong LLC, its owners, employees, contractors and manufacturing partners from and against any and all claims, demands, actions, damages, losses, liabilities, settlements, fines and costs (including reasonable legal fees) arising out of or relating to the Artwork or to our use of it as permitted by these terms, including any allegation of copyright, trademark, trade dress, patent, moral-rights, publicity or privacy infringement, and any claim that the Artwork is defamatory, unlawful or offensive. This indemnity survives completion or cancellation of your order.

You grant Little Sparrow Mahjong a non-exclusive, royalty-free licence to reproduce, adapt for production and manufacture the Artwork to fulfil your order.

We may decline, pause or halt any commission we believe, in our sole discretion, may infringe a third party's rights or that we are otherwise unwilling to produce. Where we do so, our sole obligation is to refund amounts paid for work not yet started; materials, labour and studio time already expended are non-refundable.

3. Marketing and publicity licence

You grant Little Sparrow Mahjong LLC, and those acting on its behalf, a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free, perpetual and irrevocable licence to use, reproduce, display, publish and distribute the Artwork, the finished set, and any names, logos, trademarks and other identifying marks appearing on them, in photographs, video, 3D renderings, digital previews and descriptions, for the purpose of showcasing our work and promoting Little Sparrow Mahjong. This includes our website and online showcase pages, social media accounts, portfolio, email newsletters, online and print advertising, press and editorial features, trade shows and printed marketing materials.

This licence includes the right to tag you and any associated brands or rights holders when featuring the Artwork or the finished set on social media, and to crop, resize, reformat and caption images and video as needed for each medium. It does not transfer ownership of the Artwork or any mark to us, and it does not restrict you or the rights holder from using your own Artwork in any way.

Our display of a third party's name or mark is solely to identify and depict the set we made. It does not imply, and we will not state, that the rights holder sponsors, endorses or is affiliated with Little Sparrow Mahjong.

If you would like your commission kept private, tell us in writing before payment and we will not feature it. After payment, requests to stop featuring a set are considered case by case. If a rights holder objects in writing to a specific use, we will remove that post or image from channels we control within a reasonable time; material already printed or distributed, and content shared or reposted by others, cannot be recalled.

4. Handmade variation is expected, not a defect

Every tile is cut, printed and finished by hand. Slight differences in colour, tone, opacity, edge finish, polish, alignment, weight, engraving depth and surface texture will occur between tiles within a set and between one set and another, and between the on-screen preview and the finished product.

Screens display colour differently from pigment on acrylic; on-screen previews, renderings and mock-ups are illustrative and are not a colour match guarantee. Minor registration shift, small inclusions, faint tooling marks and the character marks inherent to hand-finishing are normal and expected characteristics of the product.

Such variation is not a defect and is not grounds for return, refund, replacement or partial credit.

5. Non-refundable, and cancellation

Because each custom set is produced uniquely for you, custom set commissions are final sale and non-refundable. This includes change of mind, a change in circumstances, dissatisfaction with an approved design choice, and delivery of a set that matches the artwork you approved.

A cancellation request received before production begins may, at our discretion, be refunded less any design, studio and material costs already incurred. Once production has begun, no refund, cancellation or exchange is available.

Custom sets are not eligible for our standard returns policy, promotional return windows or exchange programmes.

6. Manufacturing defects and quality inspection

We stand behind our craftsmanship. A manufacturing defect means a genuine fault in materials or workmanship that materially impairs the use or appearance of the set — for example a cracked or warped tile, a missing tile, or print that is absent, smeared or substantially misapplied.

Whether a reported issue is a manufacturing defect, as distinct from expected handmade variation or damage caused after delivery, is determined by Little Sparrow's quality inspection team, whose determination is final.

Report a suspected defect within 14 days of delivery with photographs. Where a defect is confirmed, we will at our option repair, remake or replace the affected tile or set. Replacement is our sole remedy for a confirmed defect; monetary refunds are not offered for custom sets.

Return postage, insurance and any customs charges on items sent back to us are at the customer's expense, including where an item is returned for inspection. We are not responsible for items lost or damaged in return transit. Where a defect is confirmed, we cover outbound postage of the repaired or replacement item.

7. Timing

Production and lead-time estimates are good-faith estimates only and are not guarantees. Hand-finishing typically takes four to six weeks from artwork approval, but may take longer due to material availability, artwork complexity, revision cycles, carrier delays or events beyond our reasonable control.

Delay alone does not entitle you to cancel a commission or to a refund, and we are not liable for any loss arising from a set not arriving by a particular date unless we have agreed a firm date in writing.

8. Use, resale and reproduction

Your set is sold for personal use. Our tile blanks, tile geometry, finishing methods, packaging, presentation materials, product photography, brand names, logos and the Little Sparrow Mahjong name and trade dress remain our property and may not be copied, reproduced, reverse engineered, or used to manufacture or market competing goods.

Commercial resale, wholesale distribution, rental for commercial gain or use of the set as a manufacturing sample or master is not permitted without our prior written consent. Reselling a set does not transfer any rights in our intellectual property, and any warranty or remedy under these terms is available only to the original purchaser and is non-transferable.

9. Limitation of liability

To the maximum extent permitted by law, Little Sparrow Mahjong's total aggregate liability arising out of or relating to a custom set commission, whether in contract, tort (including negligence), warranty, statute or otherwise, is limited to the amount actually paid by you for that commission.

We are not liable for indirect, incidental, special, consequential, exemplary or punitive damages, or for loss of profit, goodwill, opportunity, data or anticipated savings, even if advised of the possibility of such loss.

Nothing in these terms excludes or limits liability that cannot lawfully be excluded or limited.

10. Payment and gift cards

Payment is taken in full at the time of order, in US dollars, through our payment processor. Gift cards and store credit may be applied at checkout. Chargebacks initiated in place of contacting us do not suspend these terms, and we reserve the right to recover costs and fees arising from an unjustified chargeback.

Prices, specifications and inclusions are those shown at the time of purchase. Applicable taxes and any import duties are the customer's responsibility.

11. Records of your approval

When you accept these terms we record the design you approved, the version of these terms shown to you, the name you typed, each acknowledgement you ticked and the date and time of acceptance. That record is kept as evidence of the agreed specification and of your acceptance, and may be relied upon in any dispute.

12. General

These terms are governed by the laws of the State of Arizona, USA, without regard to its conflict-of-laws rules. The exclusive venue for any dispute is the state or federal courts located in Maricopa County, Arizona, and you consent to that jurisdiction. Any claim must be brought within one year of the event giving rise to it, and on an individual basis rather than as part of a class or representative action.

These terms, together with our general Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, form the entire agreement for your commission and supersede prior discussions. If any provision is found unenforceable, the remainder stays in force. Our failure to enforce a provision is not a waiver of it.

Questions: caroline@littlesparrowmahjong.com.