Privacy Policy

Staple Co., Ltd. and the group companies listed separately below (collectively, the “Staple Group” or the “Group”) establish the following Privacy Policy (the “Policy”) regarding the handling of personal information of customers, business partners, and other related parties (collectively, “Customers, etc.”) in connection with the hotels, restaurants, e-commerce (retail) websites, workspaces, events, and other services operated by the Group, as well as its websites and various online forms (collectively, the “Services”). The handling of personal information of job applicants is governed separately by the “Staple Recruitment Privacy Policy.”

Article 1. Scope of the Staple Group
For the purposes of this Policy, the “Staple Group” refers to the following legal entities and any other companies subsequently established or incorporated into the Group:
Staple Co., Ltd.
Staple Nihonbashi Co., Ltd.
Staple Hakodate Co., Ltd.
Staple Nagasaki Co., Ltd.
SOIL Nagatoyumoto Co., Ltd.
Shiomachi Kikaku Co., Ltd.
FERMENT Co., Ltd.
GOOD SOIL Co., Ltd.
Staple Okayama Co., Ltd.

Article 2. Definition of Personal Information
“Personal Information” refers to personal information as defined under the Act on the Protection of Personal Information of Japan. It means information relating to a living individual that can identify a specific individual through details such as their name, date of birth, address, telephone number, contact information, or other descriptions contained therein, as well as information containing an individual identification code.

Article 3. Types of Personal Information Collected
In providing the Services, the Group may collect the following information:
1. Basic Information: Name, date of birth, gender, address, telephone number, email address, nationality, and passport information (for foreign guests staying at the Group's accommodation facilities).
2. Accommodation and Dining Information: Accommodation history, check-in and check-out dates, information about accompanying guests, information required for guest registers under the Hotel Business Act, restaurant reservation and visit history (including visits without an overnight stay), and usage history relating to events, workspaces, and other services.
3. E-commerce and Retail Information: Account registration information for e-commerce websites, including IDs and passwords, order details and purchase history, and delivery information, including the recipient's name, address, and telephone number.
4. Information for Service Improvement: Customer preferences, including food preferences, allergies, dietary restrictions, and requests during stays, as well as the contents of inquiries and survey responses.
5. Payment Information: Information regarding payment methods and transaction records. In connection with deposits for restaurant reservations and similar arrangements, the Group may directly collect credit card information by telephone, through reservation forms, in person, or by other means. In such cases, the Group will retain the information for a certain period until the relevant deposit-related procedures have been completed. Depending on the payment method, payment information may instead be handled by a payment service provider selected by the Group.
6. Business Partner Information: Names, affiliations, contact details, and business card information of representatives of business partners.
7. Information Automatically Collected When Using Websites: Device information, IP addresses, browsing history, cookies, and similar data.

Article 4. Methods of Collecting Personal Information
The Group collects Personal Information through the following methods:
1. Directly from Customers, etc., through accommodation reservations, check-in procedures, restaurant reservations, e-commerce account registrations and purchases, entries submitted through various forms, newsletter subscriptions, event registrations, business card exchanges, and other interactions.
2. From the Group's business partners, including reservation platforms, travel agencies, and travel arrangement service providers.
3. Automatically through the use of websites and applications.
4. From publicly available information on social media and other public sources.

Article 5. Purposes of Use of Personal Information
Depending on the nature of the Services provided, the Group uses Customers' Personal Information for the following purposes:
1. Accommodation Services: To receive, confirm, modify, and communicate cancellations of reservations; facilitate check-in and check-out; and provide accommodation services.
2. Restaurant and Dining Services: To receive, confirm, modify, and communicate cancellations of reservations, and to provide restaurant and dining services, regardless of whether the customer is also staying at one of the Group's accommodation facilities.
3. E-commerce and Retail Services: To receive and ship product orders, process billing, payments, refunds, and other accounting procedures, and provide information regarding retail services.
4. Workspace, Event, and Activity Services: To receive and manage reservations and provide the relevant services.
5. To personalize and provide accommodation experiences and services based on customers' preferences and usage history.
6. To conduct the Group's marketing activities, including distributing newsletters; providing information about new locations and services; announcing campaigns, accommodation plans, and events; and sharing job opportunities.
7. To deliver advertisements and measure their effectiveness.
8. To analyze information for service improvement and the development of new services.
9. To conduct surveys.
10. To respond to inquiries, including verifying the identity of the person making the inquiry.
11. To fulfill contracts and manage transactions with business partners.
12. To identify customers who violate the Terms of Use or attempt to use the Services for fraudulent or improper purposes, and to refuse their use of the Services.
13. To fulfill legal obligations, including preparing and retaining guest registers as required under the Hotel Business Act and providing disclosures required under the Act on Specified Commercial Transactions.
14. To carry out purposes incidental to those listed above.

Article 6. Management and Centralized Administration of Personal Information
The Group centrally manages Customers' Personal Information using external services selected by the Group, including customer relationship management (CRM) systems and e-commerce order management systems.
When selecting such external services, the Group confirms that appropriate security measures are in place in accordance with the Act on the Protection of Personal Information and exercises necessary and appropriate supervision over the service providers.

Article 7. Security Measures
The Group implements necessary and appropriate measures to prevent the leakage, loss, or damage of Personal Information and to ensure its security. The Group also provides appropriate training to employees who handle Personal Information and restricts access privileges to the scope necessary for business operations.

Article 8. Provision of Personal Information to Third Parties
1. The Group will not provide Personal Information to third parties without obtaining the prior consent of the relevant Customers, etc., except in the following circumstances or where otherwise permitted by the Act on the Protection of Personal Information or other applicable laws and regulations: Where disclosure is necessary to protect a person's life, physical safety, or property, and obtaining the individual's consent is difficult. Where disclosure is particularly necessary to improve public health or promote the sound development of children, and obtaining the individual's consent is difficult. Where cooperation is necessary for a national or local government agency, or a person entrusted by such an agency, to carry out duties prescribed by law, and obtaining the individual's consent could impede the performance of those duties.
2. Notwithstanding the preceding paragraph, the following recipients will not be considered third parties:
Service providers entrusted by the Group with all or part of the handling of Personal Information to the extent necessary to achieve the purposes of use, including delivery companies responsible for shipping and payment service providers responsible for processing payments.
Entities receiving Personal Information in connection with business succession resulting from a merger or other event.
Entities involved in joint use as specified in Article 9.

Article 9. Joint Use of Personal Information
Pursuant to Article 27, Paragraph 5, Item 3 of the Act on the Protection of Personal Information, the Group jointly uses Customers' Personal Information as follows:
1. Categories of Personal Information Jointly Used
The categories of Personal Information specified in Article 3, including accommodation, dining, and e-commerce purchase history.
2. Entities Engaged in Joint Use
The companies within the Staple Group specified in Article 1.
3. Purposes of Joint Use
The purposes of use specified in Article 5.
4. Entity Responsible for Managing Jointly Used Personal Information
Company Name: Staple Co., Ltd.
Address: 433 Setoda, Setoda-cho, Onomichi, Hiroshima 722-2411, Japan
Representative: Yuudai Oka, Representative Director

Article 10. Use of Cookies and External Data Transmission
The Group's websites use cookies and similar technologies to improve user convenience, analyze usage, deliver advertisements, and for other related purposes.
To achieve these purposes, the Group uses services provided by the following third parties (hereinafter referred to as “External Services”). Information collected through cookies and similar technologies may be provided to the providers of these External Services.
For information about each provider's privacy practices, please refer to its respective website.

Article 11. International Transfers of Personal Information
If the servers of external services used by the Group are located in foreign countries, Customers' Personal Information may be transferred to those countries.
In such cases, the Group will take appropriate measures in accordance with the Act on the Protection of Personal Information.

Article 12. Retention Period
The Group retains Personal Information only for as long as necessary to achieve the purposes of use and endeavors to delete it promptly when it is no longer necessary.
This does not apply where retention periods are prescribed by law, including requirements concerning guest registers under the Hotel Business Act.

Article 13. Personal Information of Minors
Minors who provide Personal Information are requested to do so after obtaining the consent of their parent or legal guardian.

Article 14. Requests for Disclosure, Correction, and Suspension of Use of Personal Information
1. Customers, etc. may request disclosure, correction, addition, deletion, or suspension of use of their own Personal Information held by the Group.
2. Upon receiving such a request, the Group will respond without undue delay if it determines that the request should be granted.
3. The Group will notify the relevant Customers, etc. without undue delay when it has taken action or decided not to take action in response to a request.

Article 15. Suspension of Marketing Communications
Customers may unsubscribe from newsletters and other marketing communications at any time by using the unsubscribe link included in the relevant email or by contacting the inquiry desk specified in Article 17.
Even after unsubscribing, the Group may continue to send communications necessary to provide its services, such as reservation confirmations.

Article 16. Changes to This Privacy Policy
1. The Group may change the contents of this Policy without notifying Customers, etc., except where otherwise stipulated by applicable laws and regulations or expressly provided for in this Policy.
2. Unless otherwise specified by the Group, any revised Privacy Policy will take effect when it is published on the relevant website.

Article 17. Contact Information
For inquiries regarding this Policy, please contact:
Company Name: Staple Co., Ltd.
Address: 433 Setoda, Setoda-cho, Onomichi, Hiroshima 722-2411, Japan
Email: info@staplejp.com
For inquiries regarding recruitment, please refer to the contact information provided in the Staple Recruitment Privacy Policy.