For Retailers selling Branded or Trademarked Products
We’ve recently had a few of our clients receive an email from Shopify requiring URGENT action on their website due to them selling branded or trademarked products. The email may look like the image below and contains information for you to action. You will notice our client had only two days to submit this information or your Shopify account could be disabled.
Is the email from Shopify Real or Fake?
Check that the email address being sent from is a shopify domain e.g @shopify.com. In this case the email was sent from risk-management@shopify.com. If the email address doesn’t end in @shopify.com or when tyou reply to the email it doesn’t end in @shopify.com then don’t respond and report the email to Shopify. If the email address above is used then it’s definitely real and requires your URGENT attention.
All links in the email should resolve to a shopify.com address too. If the links point to a website that doesn not have shopify.com in the main url then do not provide or submit any information in any form and report the email to Shopify.
Will my Shopify website get shut down?
From our experience no it won’t. Your site will still be accessible online if you pass the date they suggest. However your payments will be on hold until you submit the documents requested. This means all orders that haven't been processed yet and all new orders will be kept on hold until verified and then you will receive your payouts.
Will customers be able to still order online?
Yes customers will still be able to checkout as normal but your payments for the purchases will be on hold in your account until you can verify your brand information. If you don’t take action you could see your site being shut down so don’t delay.
What do I need to do to get my account back up and running?
Just follow the information provided by Shopify asd quickly as you can. We have found invoices relating to each branded account that you sell to be the quickest way forward, as this verifies you have a relationship with the brand. Trying to get official statements from each brand could take a lot longer and could see your account being suspended for longer.
I sell branded goods but haven’t had this email. What can I do?
There is not guarantee that your website will get picked up by Shopify as a site selling branded goods. We believe that it’s big brands like Rolex, Tudo and Tag Heuer for instance that are more likely to be at the front of warnings and verifications like these. Our recommendations are to plan forward and either have a recent invoice or a letter with written permission from each brand you work with and keep it on your computer ready to be accessed if you end up getting the same email from Shopify
It’s not fair, this is so inconvenient?
It might be a little inconvenient but I think this process actually keeps fraudulent websites and transactions at a minimum. Anyone can set up a website now, copy your product images and put prices on them and make sales without actually having any stock. By undergoing this process your are creating trust and confidence with your Shopify and your audience and ensuring reducing fraud across the internet.