Terms & Conditions – Gifting, Collaborations and Sponsored Content
Elegant Duchess is committed to delivering honest, high-quality content to its readers. To maintain transparency and integrity, the following Terms & Conditions apply to all brands, PR representatives, agencies and businesses wishing to work with Elegant Duchess (“the Blog”, “I”, “me”, or “my”).
By sending any gifted products, samples, services or collaboration proposals to Elegant Duchess, you confirm that you have read, understood and agree to these Terms & Conditions in full.
1. Gifting and Brand Collaborations
I work selectively with brands that align with the values, tone and audience of Elegant Duchess. Sending a product, service, invitation or any other form of gifting does not create any obligation on my part, including but not limited to:
- posting about the product or service on the Blog;
- posting about the product or service on any of my social media platforms;
- providing a positive or specific type of review;
- providing coverage within any set timeframe;
- returning the item.
I reserve the right to decide, at my sole discretion, whether, when, how and on which platform to feature any gifted product or service.
All reviews, opinions and content published on the Blog and my social media channels are entirely my own. I only publish honest opinions and will not feature products or services I do not genuinely support.
If gifted items are unsuitable, do not arrive as described, or if I choose not to feature them, any returns, collection, redelivery or disposal will be arranged and paid for by the brand or its representative. Elegant Duchess will not be responsible for the cost of return postage, storage, insurance or loss of gifted items.
2. Sponsored and Paid Collaborations
Paid or sponsored collaborations are agreed in writing prior to any work commencing. A written brief, agreed deliverables, timelines, usage rights and pricing must be confirmed before publication. No paid work will be considered agreed without written confirmation from Elegant Duchess.
Payment terms, unless agreed otherwise in writing, are within 30 days of invoice date. Late payments may incur interest in line with applicable law.
3. Affiliate Links
Some blog posts and social media content may contain affiliate links. This means I may receive a small commission if a link is clicked and a purchase is made, at no additional cost to the reader.
Affiliate partnerships do not influence editorial decisions. Products are selected on merit first, and affiliate links are added only where appropriate. Readers are under no obligation to click affiliate links.
In line with Google’s guidelines on paid and sponsored links, all such links are marked as “nofollow” or “sponsored”, whether the “payment” received was in the form of a gifted item, service, invitation, experience or monetary compensation.
4. Advertising Standards and Disclosure
All content published on Elegant Duchess complies with the disclosure requirements of the UK Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), the Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP) and the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). Sponsored content, gifted items, paid partnerships and affiliate content will be disclosed clearly and appropriately.
5. Review Timescale
Elegant Duchess is operated alongside full-time professional commitments. Turnaround times for gifted or collaborative content will typically be a minimum of two to four weeks from receipt of the product or service, unless a longer or shorter timeframe is agreed in writing.
Brands should not expect coverage on specific dates, launch days or campaign windows unless a paid collaboration has been separately agreed in writing with clear deliverables and deadlines.
6. Content, Editorial and Approval Rights
All editorial decisions – including copy, imagery, tone, styling and publication timing – remain at my sole discretion.
Brands may not request the removal, editing or amendment of published content unless the content contains a factual inaccuracy. Requests for factual corrections should be sent in writing and will be reviewed at my discretion.
7. Photography and Image Rights
All photography, video and written content on Elegant Duchess is the intellectual property of Elegant Duchess unless otherwise stated.
Images, video and text may not be:
- reproduced;
- republished;
- shared on brand websites or social media channels;
- used in advertising, marketing or commercial materials;
- edited, cropped or modified;
without prior written consent from Elegant Duchess. Where usage is granted, it must include appropriate credit and a link back to elegantduchess.com unless otherwise agreed in writing.
Unauthorised use of my content may result in an invoice being issued for commercial usage rights and, where necessary, further legal action.
8. Third-Party Content
Where third-party images, logos or trademarks appear on Elegant Duchess, they remain the property of their respective owners and are used for editorial and illustrative purposes only.
9. Liability
Content on Elegant Duchess is provided for general information, entertainment and inspiration. Whilst I take care to ensure accuracy, I make no warranties regarding the completeness, reliability or suitability of the information for any particular purpose. Readers act on the information provided at their own risk. Elegant Duchess accepts no liability for any loss, damage or inconvenience arising from the use of the Blog or its content.
10. Changes to These Terms
These Terms & Conditions may be updated from time to time without prior notice. The current version, published on this page, applies to all collaborations and gifting arrangements at the time of engagement.
11. Governing Law
These Terms & Conditions are governed by the laws of England and Wales. Any dispute arising in connection with them shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.
Contact
For collaboration enquiries, please contact Elegant Duchess directly via the contact form on elegantduchess.com.