Guidelines for Application and Participation

Definitions

1. “Organiser” refers to the Education University of Hong Kong Library and the Organising Team of EI Marketplace.

2. “Applicant” refers to individual EdUHK Student or a group of EdUHK Students applying for participating in EI Marketplace.

3. “Participant” refers to the Applicant who has been formally accepted in writing by the Organiser and has successfully paid the Participation Fee for participating in EI Marketplace.

4. “The Event” refers to EI Marketplace.

Eligibility and Requirements

5. All EdUHK students, either part-time or full-time, are eligible to apply for participation.

6. Each party (whether an individual or a group) may submit one application only.

7. This event is partially funded by the UGC. Priority of acceptance will be given to local undergraduate students of EdUHK as required by the UGC.

8. Participant(s) are required to:

   1. attend all briefings and training workshops organised by the Organiser;

   2. submit a Business Plan on or before the date specified by the Organiser;

   3. submit a Reflection Report which should include financial statement, assessment, etc. as determined by the Organiser, and on or before the date specified by the Organiser; and

   4. provide any other data or information as required by the Organiser for enhancement of future programmes.

   Participant(s) will be entitled to redeem the $100 deposit upon meeting all requirements described in this paragraph.

9. Information on the goods/services (e.g. hand crafted products) must be provided in advance, and tally with the actual situation of the Event. Participants failing to do so may be disqualified by the Organiser.

10. Assignment, contracting and/or sub-letting of showcase box(es) run by the Participant(s) to any third parties is strictly prohibited. Any Participant found to be in breach of this sub-letting prohibition will be asked to immediately remove all illegitimate third party materials and business information. The Organiser reserves the right to claim for any losses caused by assignment, contracting and/or sub-letting of showcases by the Participants and terminate the participation of such Participants.

11. Applicants may propose to collaborate with external non-profit organisations (e.g. schools, NGOs, social enterprises) in running their business. Full details must be provided in the application for consideration by the Organiser. If accepted, the Applicants/Participants will remain to be solely and fully responsible for discharging all responsibilities of their participation in the Event.

12. The Organiser reserves the right to reject any application base on absolute sole discretion without assigning any reasons.

Payment

13. Participation Fee of $100 (non-refundable) and Deposit of $100 (refundable upon meeting all conditions and requirements in paragraph 8) must be paid immediately upon formal acceptance by the Organiser.

14. Request for refund will not be considered once payment is made. Redeem of Deposit must be made in accordance with all conditions and requirements specified in paragraph 8.

15. Participation Fees and Deposit will not be refunded to Participants disqualified by the Organiser or withdraw on their own accord for whatever reason.

Allocation of Showcase Boxes

16. The Organiser will review and ensure that the applications are qualified according to all terms and conditions of the Event. If the number of qualified applications exceed the number of showcase boxes available, the Organiser will select applications according to criteria pre-defined by the Organiser, including but not limited to: priority for local undergraduate students as required by the UGC, relevancy to the aims and objectives of the Event, expected learning experience in entrepreneurship and innovation, viability of the proposed business, attractiveness, expected customer base, etc. All decisions of the Organiser shall be final and no appeal will be accepted.

17. The Organiser has the sole and absolute discretion in allotting showcase box for each accepted Participant. All decisions including showcase box location shall be final and no request for change will be entertained.

Showcase Box Provision for Each Participant/Team

18. A dedicated showcase box of approximately 500mm(W) x 500mm(D) x 350mm(H), located at EI Hub on LP/F of MMW Library from 1 June to 30 September 2020.

19. A dedicated webpage on EI Marketplace Website for uploading their products/services information.

20. A face-to-face opportunity to sell their products to customers on campus tentatively on 14 to 18 September 2020 at Central Plaza and 21 to 30 September 2020 at EI Hub, subject to confirmation and further changes.

Online-Offline Operation

21. Participants must complete arranging their products in the designated showcase box and uploading information to designated webpage at the time specified by the Organiser. All online information must be submitted to the Organiser in advance for approval and record.

22. When uploading information onto the designated webpages, participants must observe the following rules and regulations:

    1. Any pornographic, obscene, provocative, defamatory and hate-spreading contents are strictly prohibited.

    2. Titles, descriptions and prices of products must be clearly presented and should assist the potential customers in understanding the product.

    3. Descriptions of the goods/services to be sold must be accurate and in compliance with the Trade Descriptions Ordinance.

    4. Any image or content that violate any trademarks or intellectual properties is prohibited.

23. Participants are allowed to change photos and/or content in their designated showcase boxes and webpage upon seeking prior approval from the Organiser.

24. Participants shall be responsible for removing the products displayed in their showcase boxes before 5 October 2020.

25. Participants’ webpages on EI Marketplace Website will be frozen after 30 September 2020, and product information will be removed after 31 December 2020.

Display and Merchandising Requirements

26. Participants can only sell merchandise and services declared on their application forms unless with exemption granted by the Organiser.

27. Sale of the following items is strictly prohibited:

    1. All food and beverage

    2. Unlicenced, banned products or items which violate any trademarks or intellectual properties

    3. Offensive weapons, firearms, ammunition, explosives, radioactive materials, flammable substances, obscene articles, poisons and illegal drugs and associated paraphernalia

    4. Any form of alcohol or tobacco products

    5. Any animals or parts of animals

    6. Any items or materials of the following nature: i) provocative; ii) defamatory; and iii) spreading hate speech

    7. Any other items, merchandise or goods that are prohibited by laws or considered inappropriate by the Organiser

28. The Participants warrant that all merchandise to be displayed in the showcase boxes and on the dedicated webpage do not violate the laws of Hong Kong SAR. All merchandise to be sold or services to be provided must be legal in Hong Kong market and if any licences or permits are required for such marketing, selling or possession, the Participants must obtain the appropriate licences or permits. The Participants must at all times be compliant with any laws or regulations governing the marketing, sale, importation and possession of such products or provision of such services.

Termination of Right to Participate

29. If the Organiser is of the view that behaviours or actions of particular Participants are illegal, offensive, dangerous, and/or potentially inconsistent with the Organiser’s/Event’s objectives, the Organiser has the full authority to terminate the participation of such Participants.

30. If any Participants are found to have committed any acts which, in the opinion of the Organiser, might prejudice or damage the reputation and/or image of the University, the Organiser has the full authority to terminate the participation of such Participants.

31. If particular Participants’ right to participate in the Event is terminated by the Organiser, the Participants shall have no claim for refund of any monies paid to the Organiser or any form of compensation.

Change and Cancellation of the Project

32. The Organiser reserves the right to change the format, venue and period (including but not limited to postponing to later date(s)) of the Event as the Organiser deems fit, or cancel, or shorten the duration of the Event at any time without incurring any liability whatsoever to the Participants due to circumstances beyond the Organiser’s control.

Additional Rules and Regulations

33. The Organiser reserves the right to interpret, alter and amend any of these guidelines and to issue additional rules and regulations at any time it considers necessary for the orderly operation of the Event.

Indemnity

34. The Organiser shall not be held responsible for any dispute or liability arising from the sale of merchandise or services provided by the Participants.

35. The Organiser undertakes no financial or legal responsibility for any type of risk concerning or affecting the Participants/their customers.

36. The Organiser shall not be held responsible for any loss or damage of items stored and displayed at any showcase box.

37. Doing business involves risk. Applicants must fully understand that there will be chances of money losses, and they should consider their own investment objectives and risk tolerance level. The Applicants acknowledge that the Organiser has given no commitment or guarantee as regards the sales achieved, and agree that they have no claim against the Organiser in this connection.

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Supplementary Guidelines for Participants

In addition to paragraphs 1 to 37 of “Guidelines for Application and Participation”, all participants of EI Marketplace are required to observe and follow the following supplementary guidelines.

Seller’s Codes of Conduct

1. All customer and potential customer information received by Participants, such as residential and correspondence addresses, e-mail addresses, phone numbers, etc. must only be used to fulfill orders and must be deleted after the orders have been completed. Participants must not share customer and potential customer information with any third party.

2. Participants must provide accurate information to the Organiser, customers and potential customers at all times, and proactively update relevant parties immediately when such information changes.

3. Participants must act fairly and do not misuse website and facilities provided by EI Marketplace. Examples of unfair activities include but not limited to: attempting to increase the price of a product after an order is confirmed, attempting to damage another sellers’ goodwill, delaying delivery of goods after receiving payment, etc.

4. Participants may not send unsolicited or inappropriate messages to customers and potential customers by any means. All communications must be related to fulfilling the orders or providing customer services. Unsolicited marketing communications are prohibited.

5. Participants must clearly state the rights and obligations of buyers and sellers under the sales agreement on their designated webpage, such as when the offer is accepted, payment method, expected period and ways of delivery, dispute resolution, etc.

6. Participants must provide suppliers’ invoices of either final products or raw materials to the Organiser to prove the authenticity and originality of their products and there are no pirated products.

7. Participants must provide their financial statements to the Organiser every month to prove that their businesses are running properly.