I want to be sure that users of Shopify know exactly what is happening to me and my store, so they can prepare in case something like this happens to them. Here is the response I sent back to Skye via email. I am being bullied by a large corporation that will not take accountability for their actions. It is a tale as old as time, but it does not have to continue. Large companies should take responsibility and start doing the right thing!
Skye, while your email makes good points you are incorrect on some important factors. These factors are why I have a very strong case against Shopify and will be pursuing reimbursement to the fullest extent of the law if my store gets shut down permanently. I keep very good, honest books so I can account for at least 90% of the expenses related to creating and operating my online store. I know, little âole me is not much of a threat against a large corporation such as yourself. But if I recruit all the other business owners that have been irreparably damaged by Shopify, well that will get noticed. Telling the world might sound implausible for one person to do, but sit back and see. This is not about ego. Ego fights are short-lived because most people, including myself, calm down after a certain time period and the âfightâ doesnât have the same steam. This is about principle. This is about a big bully corporation not taking accountability for their actions, but absolutely making us be accountable for ours. Regardless of the role you have played.
Important Factor #1: Shopify has been aware of my business practices since the inception of my online store (July 2020). Not only that, but due to the actions and communication from Shopify, it was apparent to me that I was doing nothing that warranted my store to be shut down. In November of 2020 my right to use Shopify Pay was removed because I was selling brand-name items in my store. Mind you, I was not asked to remove a single product by Shopify. I was told I would no longer have the Shopify Pay option and I had to seek a different credit card processor. In October 2021 (almost exactly one year later) I received an email from the risk management department about the name brand items I was selling in my store. I responded with proof that I have the right to resell name brand products, not just by federal statute but also the means in which I acquired my goods. The vendors of the products I have listed on my store are well aware of how I and many others receive their goods to sell how we please. I was told by the Shopify risk-management department, âThank you for your attention to this matter. No further action is required at this time.â Of course, after receiving this email, I went about my business as usual. If that is not permission to proceed, then I do not know what is! You and the rest of the Shopify risk-management and legal owes me a very detailed explanation, to my face, how they can respond this way in October of last year, and then shut my store down eight months later.
Important Factor #2: The rule you provide: âYou may not offer goods or services, or post or upload Materials, that infringe on the copyright or trademarks of othersâ, is ambiguous as the day is long. How am I infringing on the copyright or trademark of others when I am selling my personal property? As someone who creates custom products, I am fully aware that once the product leaves my hands, I have lost control. The new owner can resell it, destroy it, cherish it for years⌠I know they cannot say that they are the original creator, which is not what we are doing at all. We do not offer the manufacturerâs warranties, we do not state that we are the manufacturer. We are doing what millions of people around the world are doing, trying to make a living selling products or some extra money on the side.
Important Factor #3: The goods I purchase to be sold in my store are from auction retailers such as Liquidation.com, BStock, etc. This firm receives goods from the vendors to be auctioned to the highest bidder. These goods are not stolen, nor is the final end goal of those purchasing the goods a mystery. In the time we have opened our store we have had only two, maybe three complaints from vendors. Although we are within our rights, we did remove their products as a professional courtesy. How can we be infringing on these vendors when they are putting their items up for auction for resellers?
Last month I was frustrated that I have not received a payout that is almost two years old, because my account had nothing showing telling me WHY. There were not any notes or directions that they were missing documentation. First Shopify said they were missing some business documentation from me. Really? I am sure I would never have been allowed to proceed with my store if I had forgotten some documentation. Nonetheless I played along. I did not hear anything for two+ weeks! Then the next thing I know my store is kaput and I am being asked to provide attestation that I am an authorized reseller of well over 300 different name brands I sell in my store. I think your executives should call Jeff Probst and offer contestants training because yaâll have BLINDSIDING DOWN.
Given these facts, I believe I have âan iron-cladâ case Skye. Shopify has known since I started my online store what type of store I have.
I am having my controller Jennifer Morriss compile the expenditures related directly to my online store. As I am sure you know, it takes about two years for a start-up to gain a solid footing and start showing a profit. Of course COVID disrupted this once-reliable business guesstimate. It has been very difficult keeping our doors open, even being a discount retailer. Covid or no Covid our sales are increasing and our customer base is growing. We are finally seeing a difference. My team and I had tears when we read the message that everything we have worked so hard for might be erased from existence. 7,000+ products, 17,000+ photos. Ineffable amount of hours training and troubleshooting. I created a mega-csv upload sheet that is outstanding. Adding products is very quick, and depending on what the product type is, the tags get populated automatically to go into the correct automated collections, along with other cells. Even with the constant difficulties (Shopify server errors constantly, products deleting randomly, etc.) I am always enthusiastic â almost every day. I love my store, I love my team. Even with an abnormal amount of turnover (due mostly to this international COVID clustergaggle) my passion has not diminished.
Shopify is not just removing a store from the web that helps those who have a little less money than others, you are crushing an entrepreneurs spirit and livelihood. You cannot say âyou just found outâ or âwe did not know.â You have no excuse for giving me and my team a false sense of security. I take responsibility for misinterpreting your rules and regulations. But did I misinterpret them? They are clear as mud pie.
Lastly, can you empathize? Maybe you are trying to be nice, but I cannot believe that you can. I bootstrapped my own construction business starting end of 2013. Biggest leap of faith I had taken yet, leaving a six-figure income, excellent benefits, a team I enjoyed working with, excellent mentors⌠When I sold that business I was determined to start another and do just as well if not better. I think overall I am $1.4 Million in the red. I do have a lot of products still to sell so the âvalueâ is somewhat there. Of course my mentor reminds me I have not lost anything, rather gained an incredible education and journey. Some days it is easier to believe that than others. I would have related to you much better had you said, âJennifer, I cannot relate to a financial loss of $500,000 so I can see why the imminent closing of your store has you stressed.â
If we could stop this email volley, and someone from legal or risk-management could call me to come to a resolution, that would be great. Preferably BEFORE my store goes away forever. Thank you.
