Returns & Exchanges Policy

Last Updated: 5 August 2026

At Kairali Arts Centre, we take pride in offering authentic Indian heritage products, handcrafted items, traditional apparel, musical instruments, temple jewellery, and cultural merchandise.

How Kairali is different from a large online store

Kairali is not a warehouse. We are an arts centre, and most of what we sell is made or specially ordered from artisans in Kerala and Karnataka for the person who bought it. There is no shelf of spare stock waiting behind the counter.

That is why our returns work the way they do. We do not hold a refund float and issue money the moment you click a button. When a returned piece reaches our Sharjah shop and we have checked its condition, the amount you paid is deposited straight back to the card or account you paid from. The money comes back to you in full. It simply travels in the same order the product does.

Two practical consequences, stated plainly so there is no surprise:

• The refund is released after the item arrives with us, not when you post it.
• You pay the postage to send it back, because we never charged you a margin to cover free returns in the first place.

This policy includes the Germany and European Economic Area consumer withdrawal rules for online orders. Nothing in this policy limits mandatory rights for faulty, damaged, misdescribed, or incorrect goods.

In a hurry? Before you order is the two-minute version of this page — sizes, duty, returns and made-to-order pieces, in plain language.

How returns and refunds work

You have 14 days from the day your order is delivered to tell us you want to return it. This window applies to customers in the United Arab Emirates and in Germany and the EEA alike.

To start a return, email us at management@kairaliartscentre.com (or message us on WhatsApp) with your order number and the reason. Once a return is agreed:

• You post the item back to Kairali Arts Centre in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates. All returns come to Sharjah, including returns sent from Germany. The return postage is paid by you.
• Once we receive the item and check its condition, we refund you through Stripe, back to the same card or account you paid from. This is the deposit-back step described above.
• Refunds usually reach you within 5 to 10 business days from that point, depending on your bank.
• Items should come back unworn, unwashed, and in their original condition.
• Made-to-order, custom and personalised pieces are outside the return window. We tell you on the product page, before you pay, whenever an item is made to order.

If an item arrives faulty, damaged, incorrect or not as described, none of the above applies to you. We cover the return cost and put it right. See Damaged or Incorrect Products.

Germany & EEA: 14-Day Right of Withdrawal

For standard, non-personalised goods bought online, a consumer may withdraw from the purchase without giving a reason within 14 days from the day the goods are delivered. Send a clear withdrawal notice to Kairali before the 14-day period ends. After notifying us, return the goods within a further 14 days.

The customer bears the direct cost of returning the goods to the Kairali Arts Centre return address in Sharjah, UAE. International return postage can be significant. Please use a tracked service and keep proof of dispatch.

Return Condition

To help us process a return, the item should be:

• Item must not have been worn or used beyond what is reasonably necessary to check its nature, characteristics, and fit.
• Item should be returned in its original condition where reasonably possible.
• Original packaging should be included where reasonably possible.
• Customer must provide proof of purchase.

You may inspect a product as you would in a shop. You may be responsible for any loss in value caused by handling beyond what is necessary to establish the product’s nature, characteristics, and fit.

Return Shipping

The customer is responsible for arranging and paying the direct return-shipping cost. Items must be shipped to the approved Kairali Arts Centre return address in Sharjah after contacting us.

We strongly recommend using a tracked shipping service. Kairali Arts Centre is not responsible for items lost during return transit.

Customs Duty, Import VAT and How Your Piece Travels

The price you pay covers the piece and its delivery. It does not include any customs duty, import VAT, clearance fee or handling charge your own country may raise when the parcel arrives. Those are payable by you, the buyer, directly to the carrier or to your customs authority. They vary by country and by parcel value, and we cannot pay them for you or predict them accurately.

Orders inside the United Arab Emirates are handled under UAE law and are normally free of any additional import charge. Orders travelling into the EU, the UK, India or elsewhere may attract one.

Much of what we sell is not held in a warehouse. It is made by hand by a small workshop or a family of artisans, and a good deal of it is shipped to you directly from them or from our partner in India rather than passing through Sharjah first. We hold some stock ourselves — the heritage shirts in Sharjah and in Bonn — and those we pack and post. The product page tells you which is which. It matters because it affects how long your piece takes to arrive and who handles it on the way.

Sizes: Indian Sizing Is Not UK or EU Sizing

Our garments are cut to Indian sizing. An Indian large is generally closer to a UK medium. If you order the size you normally wear at home there is a real chance it will not fit, and a shirt that does not fit is a return you pay postage on.

These are a guide, not a guarantee — handmade garments vary between pieces. Measure a shirt you already own across the chest and compare, rather than going by the letter. If you are unsure, message us before ordering and we will measure the actual piece for you. We would far rather spend five minutes on that than have you post a shirt back across a border.

Non-Returnable Items

Because most Kairali pieces are made or ordered for one named customer, the statutory withdrawal right does not apply to them. Under EU law (and mirrored in this policy for the UAE), goods made to the customer's specification or clearly personalised are excluded from the 14-day withdrawal right. We mark these items on the product page before you pay, so you always know which category you are buying in.

The withdrawal right does not apply where a legal exception applies, including:

• Custom-made products
• Personalized products
• Goods made to the customer’s specifications or clearly personalised
• Digital products
• Downloadable products
• Gift cards
• Course registrations
• Workshop registrations

Damaged or Incorrect Products

If you receive a damaged item, a defective item, or an incorrect item, please contact us within 48 hours of delivery and provide:

• Order number
• Description of issue
• Photographs of the product

After verification, we will provide the remedy required by applicable consumer law. This may include repair, replacement, price reduction, or refund.

Exchanges

Exchanges may be approved for:

• Defective products
• Wrong item received
• Size exchange requests (subject to stock availability)

The customer is responsible for shipping the original item back to us.

Refunds

For a valid Germany/EEA withdrawal, we refund the product price and the cost of our least expensive standard outbound delivery method within 14 days after receiving the withdrawal notice. We may withhold reimbursement until we receive the goods or the customer provides proof that they were sent back.

• Approved refunds are deposited back to the original payment method. We do not issue store credit or vouchers in place of money.
• For all other returns, the refund is released once the returned piece has reached our Sharjah shop and been checked. Nothing is deducted as a restocking or handling fee.
• Processing times depend on the payment provider and bank, typically 5 to 10 business days after we release the refund.

Extra outbound costs for an upgraded or express delivery option are not refundable. The customer-paid return postage is not reimbursed unless the item is faulty, damaged, incorrect, or applicable law requires otherwise.

How to Withdraw

Before the deadline, email or WhatsApp us with your name, order number, the goods concerned, delivery date, and a clear statement that you are withdrawing from the purchase. You may use this wording:

“I hereby withdraw from my contract for the purchase of [item], ordered on [date] and received on [date]. Name: [name]. Address: [address]. Order number: [number]. Date: [date].”

Widerrufsrecht für Deutschland

Verbraucher können den Online-Kauf von nicht personalisierten Standardwaren innerhalb von 14 Tagen ab Erhalt der Ware ohne Angabe von Gründen widerrufen. Nach der Widerrufserklärung ist die Ware innerhalb weiterer 14 Tage zurückzusenden. Die unmittelbaren Kosten der Rücksendung an die von Kairali bestätigte Rücksendeadresse in Sharjah, VAE, trägt der Kunde. Die Erstattung erfolgt auf dasselbe Zahlungsmittel, sobald die Ware bei uns in Sharjah eingegangen und geprüft wurde. Das Widerrufsrecht besteht nicht bei Waren, die nach Kundenspezifikation angefertigt oder eindeutig auf persönliche Bedürfnisse zugeschnitten sind (§ 312g Abs. 2 Nr. 1 BGB); solche Artikel sind auf der Produktseite vor dem Kauf gekennzeichnet. Gesetzliche Rechte bei mangelhafter, beschädigter oder falsch gelieferter Ware bleiben unberührt.

Complaints

If anything is not right with your order or your experience, we want to hear from you. Email management@kairaliartscentre.com and a member of our management team will personally help. Every Kairali purchase supports Indian artisans, and we care about getting it right for you.

Contact Information

Return Address

Please write to us before sending anything back. We will give you a return reference and confirm which of the two addresses to use. A parcel that arrives unannounced is one we cannot match to an order, which delays your refund.

Send it with a tracked service and keep the receipt. The refund is released once the piece has reached the address above and we have checked its condition.