ABOUT THE ICARE MARKETPLACE:
The iCare Marketplace houses a growing variety of memorial gifts and keepsakes, comfort items, inspirational and faith items made in the USA.
The marketplace offers products direct to consumers, many of which were traditionally carried only in funeral homes. Oftentimes, consumers aren’t made aware that these products exist. The direct-to-consumer marketplace brings visibility of available products to mainstream society, raising awareness about a broad assortment of gifts available for those who lose a loved one.
HOW IT WORKS:
- Vendors submit an application describing their home-crafted or commercially created memorial, keepsake, comfort or inspirational product. Along with the product description, the vendor indicates a wholesale or discount price of that item.
- If the item is accepted, the product will be listed in the marketplace at a retail price set by the marketplace.
- Consumers purchase that item directly from the marketplace. The marketplace then orders and pays for the product wholesale from the vendor.
- The vendor then creates the product and ships the item directly to the consumer when ready.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Is there a vendor fee to sign up?
No, there is no vendor fee to join the iCare Marketplace.
When will the marketplace launch?
The marketplace’s website is currently being built. A soft launch will begin in June with a hard launch is scheduled for September 2024 to coincide with the releasing of a new app that will include the iCare Library, podcasts, and more.
What kind of products does the marketplace sell?
The marketplace focuses on featuring the talent of individuals and businesses located within the United States who create or manufacture memorial, keepsake, comfort, and inspirational gifts and products. Both home-based vendors and commercial vendors are welcome to join the marketplace as long as their products are made in the USA and are of good quality. Products include but are not limited to:
1. Custom gifts made with cremains
2. Custom gifts made with fingerprints
3. Memorial, inspirational, faith-based jewelry
4. Customized home decor including candles, ornaments, soaps, etc
5. Customized linen including pillows and blankets
6. Customized kitchen items including mugs and plates
7. Grief, comfort, and faith-based loss related books
8. Customized wood products
9. Customized trinkets such as keychains
10. FDA approved customized food gifts
11. Customized memorial art
If you aren’t sure if your product(s) is appropriate for the iCare Marketplace, send an email to learn@internationalgriefinstitute.com.
What type of vendors will be carried?
All vendors, both commercial and home-based, are welcome to apply as long as they make their product(s) in the USA. The marketplace will handpick products based on quality.
Who creates the listing?
The marketplace will create each product’s listing based on the description sent by the vendor. A product link will be emailed to each vendor to ensure all details are correct.
Can a vendor list all their products in the marketplace?
No. The marketplace will handpick products offered by each vendor to ensure a balanced assortment.
What if a vendor doesn’t have a wholesale price list?
Each vendor determines the wholesale price they are willing to grant to the marketplace. Because the marketplace doesn’t charge vendor fees, it operates on monies earned between wholesale and retail just like traditional stores. Therefore, in order for the marketplace to accept a product, the wholesale price must be below its standard retail price.
For example, a pair of earrings might cost the vendor $8 to make. The vendor agrees to sell those earrings wholesale to the marketplace at a price of $15. The marketplace then lists the earrings for $20 plus shipping. The vendor earns $15 plus shipping. The marketplace keeps $5.
Can a vendor sell elsewhere in addition to the marketplace?
Yes. Vendors are not exclusive to the iCare Marketplace, and may sell anywhere they wish. Some vendors use websites, some use Etsy, some use Amazon, etc. The iCare Marketplace provides an additional venue for those who create and sell comfort gifts and memorial keepsakes.
When is a vendor paid?
Vendors are paid immediately when an item is ordered through the marketplace. If a vendor doesn’t have a payment gateway in place, they’ll need to create one via Square, Stripe, Venmo, etc. for each item listed in the marketplace.
Who pays for shipping?
Shipping costs are set by the vendor. If the vendor’s shipping cost is $4.95, that amount is collected by the marketplace and immediately passed along to the vendor to cover shipping.
How will the marketplace be marketed to consumers?
International Grief Institute LLC, the parent company of the iCare Marketplace, will market individual products and vendors via social media, email newsletters, and press releases. Vendors are also welcome to advertise their individual products carried by the marketplace however they wish.
Will the marketplace offer other types of products besides memorial gifts and keepsakes?
Yes. Because comfort comes in many forms, the marketplace will also carry faith-based and inspirational gifts. Any product is welcome as long as it offers comfort and hope.
How is the iCare Marketplace different from Etsy?
The marketplace does not charge vendors any fees. It operates with a mixed B2B and B2C model. The marketplace orders directly from both commercial and home-based businesses at wholesale or discount prices, then sells those items directly to consumers at a retail price. When an order is placed, the vendor receives immediate payment for the order, then ships the item directly to the consumer.
Who owns the iCare Marketplace?
The iCare Marketplace is owned and operated by the International Grief Institute, LLC. Its aim is to offer mourning, comfort, inspirational and/or faith products directly to buyers.
Are charitable products allowed?
Yes, charitable products are allowed. If you are raising money on behalf of a charity, you must obtain that charity’s consent and indicate so in your product listing.
What happens if a vendor fails to ship a product that’s been paid for?
Because the reputation of the marketplace affects all vendors, the marketplace operates on a one-strike-you’re-out rule. If a vendor has been paid for a product and fails to send it to the consumer, the marketplace will refund the consumer’s payment, and the offending vendor and all their listed products will be removed from the marketplace permanently.
What if an item gets lost during shipping?
If an item has been lost in shipping, the vendor must provide a tracking number to prove it was sent.
What is your vendor policy?
You can read our Vendor Policy below. The Vendor Policy is a part of our Terms of Use. By submitting your product listing(s) using the form to the right, you agree to International Grief Institute’s Terms of Use, including this Vendor Policy, and Privacy Policy.
VENDOR POLICY
The International Grief Institute is herein referred to as “IGI”.
1. SELLABLE PRODUCTS
IGI is focused on products featuring the talent of individuals and businesses located within the United States of America, including those made in a commercial facility based in the USA. Handmade products are allowed as long as they are made and/or designed within the USA and are of good quality. IGI has the right to refuse or terminate a product for poor quality at their discretion. IGI may, on occasion, allow non-USA made product(s) on the iCare Marketplace at their own discretion. If you have a non-USA made product you wish to sell, please email learn@internationalgriefinstitute.com with product details. If you are raising money on behalf of a charity, you must obtain that charity’s consent and indicate so in your product listing. IGI has the right to select all products for the iCare Marketplace.
2. VENDOR PRODUCTS
By listing a product(s) on IGI’s iCare Marketplace, you agree that you will:
- Provide honest, accurate information in your product listing.
- Provide a wholesale price list or discount rate to IGI and honor those prices.
- Allow IGI to set the retail price of your product(s) and keep the difference between the wholesale or discount price and retail price.
- Ensure that product text, photos or videos used to represent your product are accurate and represent your item.
- Respond to all inquiries in a timely manner.
- Be responsible for complying with applicable laws and regulations for your product(s) listed through IGI’s iCare Marketplace, including any required labels and/or warnings. IGI assumes no responsibility for the accuracy, labeling, or content of your product listing(s).
- Agree to honor processing and shipping times outlined in your product listing(s).
- Agree to dropship all orders of your product(s). Vendors shall not ship products to IGI for distribution.
- Agree to notify IGI immediately if you cannot complete an order, and refund IGI the entire purchase amount.
- Resolve disagreements or order issues directly with the consumer who purchased your product(s) through IGI’s iCare Marketplace.
- Respect the intellectual property of others. If you feel someone has violated your intellectual property rights, email learn@internationalgriefinstitute.com.
- Honor IGI Policies as outlined.
3. PRIVACY AND PROTECTING PERSONAL INFORMATION
- You are responsible for protecting buyers’ personal information you receive or process, and you must comply with all relevant legal requirements. This includes applicable data protection and privacy laws that govern the ways in which you can use IGI user information. These laws may require that you post and comply with your own privacy policy, which must be accessible to IGI shoppers with whom you interact.
- When you sell a product through the IGI iCare Marketplace using our Services (subject to this Policy), you may receive and determine what to do with certain personal information, such as when communicating with and entering into transactions with buyers. This means you process personal information (for example, buyer name, email address, and shipping address) and, to the extent you do so, you are an independent controller of data relating to other users that you may have obtained through the Services.
- If you disclose personal information without the buyer’s proper consent, you are responsible for that unauthorized disclosure including disclosures you make or unintentional data breaches.
- If IGI and you are found to be joint data controllers of personal information, and if IGI is sued, fined, or otherwise incurs expenses because of something that you did in your capacity as a joint data controller of buyer personal information, you agree to indemnify, defend and hold IGI (and its employees, agents, consultants, subsidiaries, partners, affiliates, and licensors) harmless against any claims, costs, losses, damages, liabilities, judgements and expenses (including reasonable attorney fees) in connection with your processing of buyer personal information.
4. REFUNDS
IGI reserves the right to refund buyers and recoup such refunded amounts from the vendor where the vendor cannot fulfill the order or refuses to do so.
5. PAYMENTS
- Payment for a product(s) will be sent in accordance with each vendor’s wholesale or discount policy. Where allowed, payment for each product will be sent immediately via the vendor’s website payment gateway. If no payment gateway exists for the vendor, IGI will send payment via Venmo, PayPal, or other online payment system of IGI’s choosing. If none exist for the vendor, IGI shall mail a business check to the vendor.
- IGI does not charge buyers a credit card processing fee, therefore vendors may not add a credit card processing fee to their wholesale or discount price(s). A credit card processing fee is an inherit part of doing business.
- If a vendor changes the method in which they collect payments for product(s), they will immediately notify IGI of their new collection system by sending an email to learn@internationalgriefinstitute.com and include the appropriate vendor information.
- IGI reserves the right to operate payment gateways as it sees fit and collect payment from buyers without sharing payment information with vendor of said product(s).
6. REPORTING OBLIGATIONS
Internal Revenue Service regulations require that we file a Form 1099-K to report unadjusted annual gross sales information for vendors located in the United States or being paid in USD in certain circumstances. To comply with these regulations, vendors who meet or approach applicable thresholds in a calendar year, aggregated across his or her product(s), will be required to provide taxpayer-identification information to IGI via W-9.
7. CONTACT US
If you have any questions regarding this Policy or IGI Terms, you may contact us using any one of the options below.
- Send an email to learn@internationalgriefinstitute.com
- Call 360-510-8590
- Send via USPS to: International Grief Institute LLC, P.O. Box 344, Darby, MT 59829 USA
Last updated on February 15, 2024
IT’S EASY TO JOIN!
iCare Marketplace is a direct to consumers website and a corresponding app scheduled to launch Fall 2024. It’s easy to apply to list your products.
- Complete the vendor application below for up to 5 items.
- Provide IGI with your wholesale or discount price for each item.
- Agree to our Vendor Policy, Terms of Service, and Privacy Policy.
- Once your product(s) has been accepted, you’ll have a chance to review the listing(s) to ensure accuracy. Please note that not all products will be accepted.
By submitting the button above, I confirm I have read and hereby agree to this IGI Vendor Policy, Terms of Service and Privacy Policy as stated, updated 02/15/2024. This submission constitutes my agreement and electronic signature.