Returns & refunds

1. The 30-day window

You have 30 days from delivery to request a return for any reason. To be refundable, the item must be:

• Unused and in the condition you received it
• In its original packaging, with any tags or cards included
• Accompanied by your order number

"Unused" means you tried it, not that you lived with it. Trying on a ring, unwrapping a board or holding a mug is fine. A soap bar that's been in the shower, or a candle that's been lit, isn't returnable for hygiene and safety reasons.

2. How to start a return

1. Email info@buildingdigitalempire.store with your order number and what you'd like to return, or message us on WhatsApp at +1 575 210 4308.
2. We reply within one business day with a return authorisation and the address.
3. Pack the item securely — ideally in the box it arrived in.
4. Ship it back and send us the tracking number.
5. We inspect on arrival and refund within 3–5 business days.

Please don't send anything back before contacting us. Unauthorised returns can't be traced to your order and we may not be able to refund them.

3. Who pays return shipping

Situation	Return postage	Original shipping refunded?
Item arrived damaged	We pay — no return needed	Yes
Wrong item sent	We pay (prepaid label)	Yes
Item is faulty	We pay (prepaid label)	Yes
Changed your mind	You pay	No
Doesn't fit / not as expected	You pay	No

4. Refunds

Refunds go back to your original payment method. Once we process it, the money lands in 5–10 business days depending on your bank — that part is out of our hands, and we can't speed it up.

We refund the item price. Original shipping is refunded only when the return is our fault (see the table above). If your order qualified for free shipping and a partial return drops it below the $75 threshold, we deduct the $6.95 standard shipping cost from your refund.

5. Exchanges

Want a different size, colour or glaze? Easiest route: return the original for a refund and place a new order. That way you're not waiting on our inspection before your replacement starts being made.

If you'd rather do a straight swap, message us. We'll hold the replacement and start it as soon as your return shows movement on tracking. Any price difference is settled either way.

6. What can't be returned

• Personalised or custom items — monogrammed leather, custom colourways, bespoke sizing, engraved pieces. They can't be resold to anyone else. This doesn't apply if the item is faulty or we made the mistake.
• Used soap and burnt candles — hygiene and safety.
• Earrings — once the hygiene seal is broken, unless faulty.
• Sale items marked final — we'll say so clearly on the product page. Nothing in the current range is final sale.
• Gift cards.

Your statutory rights aren't affected by any of this. If an item is faulty, none of the exceptions above apply.

7. Damaged or incorrect items

Ceramics break sometimes. It's rare, but it happens, and it's on us. Email photos of the item and the packaging within 48 hours of delivery and we'll send a replacement or refund you in full, whichever you'd rather.

You don't need to send a broken piece back. Shipping a cracked mug across the country helps nobody. Photos are enough. Please keep the packaging for a week or so in case the carrier wants to inspect it for their own claim.

8. Handmade variation isn't a fault

Every piece is made by hand, so grain, glaze pooling, hammer texture, dye saturation and dimensions vary a little from the photo. That's inherent to the work — it's the reason to buy handmade rather than a defect in it.

That said, we're not using this as a shield. If a variation is genuinely outside what you'd reasonably expect from the photo and description — a wildly different colour, a size that's clearly off, a finish that isn't what we described — tell us. We'll treat it as our error, not your misunderstanding, and we'll cover the return.

9. Bulk & wholesale orders

Bulk orders (10+ units) work differently, because production starts specifically for you:

• Before production starts — cancel for a full refund, no questions.
• After production starts — the deposit covers materials and labour already committed and isn't refundable.
• Custom and private-label runs — not returnable unless faulty or not to the approved spec.
• Faulty units within a bulk order — replaced or credited individually. You don't lose the whole order over a few bad pieces.

This is exactly why we ship samples at retail price and credit them against your bulk order. Check the piece in your hand before committing to a hundred of them. Start a bulk order.

10. Cancelling an order

Contact us within 12 hours of ordering and we'll cancel it for a full refund before the maker begins. After that, if it hasn't shipped, we'll usually still cancel it — message us and we'll try. Once it's shipped, the standard 30-day return process applies.

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Need to start a return? Contact us, email info@buildingdigitalempire.store, or WhatsApp +1 575 210 4308.
Returns address: BUILDING DIGITAL EMPIRE LLC, 1209 Mountain Road Pl NE, Ste 10376, Albuquerque, NM 87110, USA — please get authorisation first.