Privacy Policy

Novara is an online marketplace that lets you discover and book beauty and wellness businesses in Ghana, on our website and in the Novara mobile app (together, the "Service"). The Service is operated by Novara (registration number 133993456789), whose address is 17 Eseefoo St, Accra, Greater Accra Region ("Novara", "we", "us").

We handle personal data in line with Ghana's Data Protection Act, 2012 (Act 843). For the account and booking data described here, we are the data controller. Each business you book with also receives your booking details and is responsible for how it uses them in its own salon, spa or shop.

Information you give us

• Account details: first and last name, mobile phone number, password (stored only in encrypted, hashed form) and, if you add it, an email address and profile photo.
• Bookings: the business, services, team member, date and time you choose, and any notes you add for the business.
• Messages you send to businesses through the Service, and reviews and ratings you leave.
• Favourites you save and the details you share when contacting us.
• If you list a business: the business name, contact details, address, services, prices, opening hours, photos and team members you add.

Information created when you use the Service

• Booking history, cancellations, reschedules and no-shows.
• Payment records: amount, status, reference and the payment method type. Card and Mobile Money details are entered with our payment provider and are not stored by us.
• Reward points earned, spent and refunded.
• Notifications we send you and whether you have read them.
• Technical data needed to run the Service, such as sign-in tokens kept on your device, and basic server logs (IP address, browser or device type, time of request).

Location. If you allow it, your browser's location is used only on your device to pick the nearest city for "near you" results. Your exact location is not sent to us.

• To create and secure your account, including verifying your phone number with a one-time SMS code.
• To make, change and cancel bookings, and to share the booking with the business you chose.
• To take payments and deposits, issue refunds and keep payment records.
• To send booking confirmations, reminders and updates by SMS, WhatsApp, email and in-app notification.
• To run the rewards programme: crediting points for completed visits and applying them as discounts.
• To deliver messages between you and businesses and to publish reviews you choose to post.
• To prevent fraud and abuse, enforce our Terms of Use, and resolve disputes.
• To keep the Service working, fix problems and improve it.
• To meet legal, tax and accounting obligations.

• To perform our agreement with you: running your account, bookings, payments and rewards.
• Your consent: optional things such as location access. You can withdraw consent at any time.
• Our legitimate interests: keeping the Service secure, preventing fraud and improving it, balanced against your rights.
• Legal obligations: keeping financial records and responding to lawful requests.

We do not sell your personal information. We share it only as needed to provide the Service:

• Businesses you book with receive your name, phone number, booking details, notes and messages, and can see reviews you leave for them.
• Payment provider: Hubtel processes Mobile Money and card payments.
• Messaging providers: Arkesel (SMS), Meta's WhatsApp Business Platform (WhatsApp messages) and Resend (email) deliver verification codes and booking updates.
• Hosting and storage: our servers and databases, our website host, and Contabo Object Storage for business photos.
• Authorities and advisers where the law requires it, or to protect the rights, safety and property of our users or Novara.
• A buyer or successor if Novara is reorganised, merged or sold, under the same protections.

Some of these providers may store or process data outside Ghana. Where that happens we rely on them to protect it to a standard consistent with Act 843.

We keep your account information for as long as your account is open. Booking and payment records are kept for as long as needed for tax, accounting and dispute purposes, after which they are deleted or anonymised. Verification codes expire after 10 minutes. If you ask us to close your account, we delete or anonymise your personal information unless we must keep part of it by law.

Under Act 843 you can ask us to:

• tell you what personal information we hold about you and give you a copy;
• correct information that is wrong or incomplete (you can also edit most details in your account);
• delete your account and personal information;
• stop or limit certain uses, including any marketing;
• withdraw consent you have given.

Email info@novara.com.gh from the phone number or email on your account and we will respond within a reasonable time. If you are not satisfied, you can complain to Ghana's Data Protection Commission.

Passwords are stored as one-way hashes, connections are encrypted, sign-in sessions expire and refresh securely, and access to personal data is limited to people and systems that need it. No online service can be completely secure, so please keep your password private and tell us straight away if you think your account has been misused.

You must be at least 18 to create an account. Bookings for a child must be made by a parent or guardian, who is responsible for the information provided. If you believe a child has given us personal information, contact us and we will delete it.

We store sign-in tokens in your browser's local storage (or secure storage in the app) to keep you logged in, and remember small preferences such as your city choice. We do not use advertising or third-party tracking cookies.

We may update this policy as the Service changes. We will post the new version here with a new date, and tell you in the app or by message if a change significantly affects you.

Questions about this policy or your information: info@novara.com.gh, or write to Novara, 17 Eseefoo St, Accra, Greater Accra Region.