Terms of Service

1. Acceptance and who may use the service

By using the Service, creating an account or placing an order you accept these Terms and the Privacy Policy. If you act for a company, you warrant that you have authority to bind it.

The Service is for professional operators only (HoReCa, professional retail, distributors and similar B2B buyers). It is not a consumer shop. Consumer withdrawal rights under consumer-protection law do not apply.

You must be 18 or older and legally able to buy and hold wine in your country of operation.

2. What the service is

Wine Connect is a B2B platform for Italian wines sold to European HoReCa. We buy from wineries in our own name and resell to you: we are the merchant of record, not a mere agent.

The first operating market is France HoReCa. Other EU countries (including Spain and Poland) may open over time. Catalogue, pricing, logistics and fiscal documents depend on the delivery country and on a complete compliance profile.

Net B2B prices and checkout features are available to authenticated users with the appropriate role.

3. Accounts and security

The account is personal or corporate. You are responsible for credentials and for activity under your login. Report unauthorised use immediately to info@wearewineconnect.com.

Wine Connect may assign roles (buyer, winery, operations, CRM, carrier, admin). Each role sees only its area. Staff access does not change who owns your data or orders.

4. Buyer onboarding and compliance

Before a B2B order you must complete company and contact details, a delivery address, and compliance data (legal entity, EU VAT, company category, destination country). We may refuse or hold an order if data are incomplete, inconsistent or unverifiable (including VAT vs declared country).

Compliance data are used for invoices, excise, e-DAS and transport documents. You warrant they are accurate. You remain responsible for licences and duties in your own country.

5. Catalogue, prices and minimum quantities

Prices shown after login are net B2B prices in euro unless stated otherwise. Checkout adds logistics, compliance handling and, where applicable, excise (e.g. French wine excise). Coupons and logistics loyalty points may change the total as shown in the product.

Unless a page says otherwise, a B2B order requires at least 180 bottles in total and 90 bottles per winery. Smaller baskets cannot be checked out.

Images and tasting notes are indicative. Vintages, availability and prices may change. We do not run live warehouse stock: availability is confirmed when the order is prepared. Wine Connect reserves the right to ship a more recent vintage of the same wine if the vintage stated on the order is unavailable. That substitution is not a breach and does not by itself give a right to refund or cancellation, unless the substitute product is non-conforming.

6. When the sale is formed

An order starts as a pending draft. The sale is formed when payment is received and matched (card or PayPal via Stripe, or a SEPA credit that has landed and been reconciled). Until then the order may be cancelled within the limits shown in the product.

If you choose bank transfer and declare that you have sent it, the order is locked pending matching: you cannot cancel it or pay again by card or PayPal, to avoid a double collection. If you only viewed the IBAN and did not declare the transfer, you may still change method or cancel.

7. Payments

Available methods, when configured: card and PayPal via Stripe; SEPA credit transfer to the stated account (Qonto) with a mandatory payment reference. Wine Connect S.r.l. is the beneficiary.

Card and PayPal are processed by Stripe; we do not store full card numbers. A SEPA transfer must match the exact amount and reference; matching may take minutes (Instant SEPA) or one to two business days (standard SEPA).

A cancelled checkout does not complete the sale. The order stays payable while it is pending and not locked by a declared transfer.

8. Delivery and logistics

We arrange winery pick-up, consolidation and delivery to the professional address you give. Lead times in checkout are estimates, not a guaranteed deadline unless agreed in writing.

Metropolitan France and Corsica are served under the current distribution tariffs. Overseas territories and some postcodes may be refused before payment. Check the postcode at checkout.

Transit risk follows the carrier’s terms and the shipping documents. Inspect goods on arrival and report damage or shortage promptly, with a reservation to the carrier where required.

9. Samples

Tasting-box requests are separate from B2B orders. A proposal may be free or payable; if payable, checkout works like an order (card, PayPal or SEPA). “Paid” is set by Wine Connect after funds are actually received, not by the buyer.

10. Wineries and producers

Producers who list wines or prepare pallets do so under a separate purchase contract with Wine Connect. These Terms do not replace that contract. Wine Connect remains the only seller to the HoReCa buyer.

11. Intellectual property

Trade marks, layout, copy, photographs and software belong to Wine Connect or the rightful owners (wineries, photographers). You may not copy the catalogue, scrape it abusively, or reuse content outside normal professional use of the platform.

12. Liability

We provide the Service with professional care. We do not guarantee uninterrupted availability (maintenance, network, payment or hosting outages).

To the extent permitted by law, Wine Connect’s liability for breach is capped at the lower of: (i) the amount of the disputed order excluding logistics and tax; (ii) direct, reasonably foreseeable loss. Indirect loss (lost profit, lost custom) is excluded except in case of wilful misconduct or gross negligence.

We are not liable for delay or refusal caused by inaccurate compliance data, unserved destinations, or acts of the carrier or customs/excise authorities, if we have performed our platform and documentation duties.

13. Suspension and closure

We may suspend or close an account for unlawful use, false data, non-payment, abuse, or risk to others. You may request closure at info@wearewineconnect.com. Closure does not end obligations on completed orders or statutory record-keeping.

14. Changes

We may update these Terms. The date at the top is the current version. For material changes we will notify you where reasonable, by email or in-product notice. Continued use after an update is acceptance, without prejudice to mandatory rights.

15. Governing law and venue

Italian law applies. The courts of Florence have exclusive jurisdiction, except where mandatory law says otherwise. If language versions conflict, the Italian text prevails.

16. Contact

Wine Connect S.r.l., Firenze, Via Duca d'Aosta 20, VAT IT07561510483, info@wearewineconnect.com