Culture Cave

Terms of Service

The ground rules for using Culture Cave, the discovery front-door and hosting platform that connects buyers with independent mycology vendors. Please read these terms carefully before you use the marketplace.

Plain-English template, not legal advice. This document is a starting point written for clarity. Have it reviewed and adapted by qualified legal counsel before you rely on it.

A quick note before you start

This is a template. It is meant to be honest and reasonable, but it is not legal advice and it has not yet been reviewed by an attorney. The owner's legal counsel should review and adapt it before it is relied on. If you are reading this as a live document on the site, treat any placeholder language as pending final legal review.

1. Acceptance of terms

Culture Cave ("Culture Cave", "we", "us", or "our") operates the marketplace and related services at culturecave.store (the "Platform"). These Terms of Service (the "Terms") govern your access to and use of the Platform, whether you are browsing, buying from a vendor, or selling as a vendor.

By accessing or using the Platform, creating an account, placing an order with a vendor, or listing products as a vendor, you agree to be bound by these Terms and by any policies referenced here, including our Privacy Policy. If you do not agree with these Terms, please do not use the Platform.

If you are using the Platform on behalf of a business or other organization, you represent that you have the authority to bind that organization to these Terms.

2. What Culture Cave is (and is not)

Culture Cave is a discovery front-door and hosting platform for independent mycology vendors. We help buyers find independent vendors, and we give those vendors a place to run their own storefronts. That is the whole of our role.

We want to be very clear about what this means, because it affects your rights and who is responsible for what:

  • Culture Cave is not the seller. Every product listed on the Platform is sold by an independent third-party vendor, not by Culture Cave. The vendor, not Culture Cave, is your counterparty in any purchase.
  • Culture Cave does not process payments and never touches your money. Each vendor takes payment directly through their own payment processor. Funds flow from the buyer to the vendor. Culture Cave is not a party to that transaction and does not hold, route, or handle those funds.
  • Culture Cave does not handle fulfilment, shipping, or returns. Each vendor is responsible for packing, shipping, delivery, refunds, and returns for their own orders.
  • Culture Cave charges vendors a flat monthly subscription and takes 0% commission on sales. Vendors keep 100% of every sale. Our business is hosting and discovery, not a cut of the transaction.
  • Culture Cave does not guarantee the quality, legality, safety, accuracy, or availability of any product listed by a vendor. Listings are created and controlled by vendors.

3. Eligibility (18+)

You must be at least 18 years old to use the Platform, create an account, buy from a vendor, or sell as a vendor. By using the Platform, you represent and warrant that you are 18 or older and that you have the legal capacity to enter into these Terms.

The Platform is intended for lawful use by adults. We may ask vendors to verify a buyer's age, and vendors may set their own additional age or identity requirements. We reserve the right to suspend or terminate any account we reasonably believe belongs to someone under 18.

4. Acceptable use and product compliance

The Platform lists mushroom spores (syringes, prints, and swabs), genetics and liquid cultures, gourmet and culinary mushroom cultures, substrates, and lab and microscopy supplies. This is a serious point, so please read it carefully.

All spores are sold strictly for microscopy, taxonomy, and legal gourmet cultivation only. You agree that you will not use, or attempt to use, anything purchased through the Platform for the production, cultivation, extraction, or consumption of any controlled or psychoactive substance, or for any other unlawful purpose.

You are responsible for knowing and following the laws that apply to you. Laws about spores, cultures, and related products vary by country, state, and locality, and some genetics and species are restricted in certain regions. It is your responsibility to know your local laws before you buy, and to comply with them. If a product is restricted where you live, do not order it.

You agree not to use the Platform to:

  • engage in, promote, or facilitate any controlled-substance activity or any other illegal activity;
  • misrepresent your age, identity, location, or intended use of a product;
  • post false, misleading, infringing, harassing, or unlawful content;
  • attempt to interfere with, disrupt, scrape, or gain unauthorized access to the Platform or its systems;
  • circumvent any shipping restriction, regional restriction, or vendor policy;
  • use the Platform in any way that violates these Terms or applicable law.

5. Vendor responsibilities

If you sell on the Platform, you are an independent vendor, not an employee, agent, partner, or joint venturer of Culture Cave. You run your own business and you are solely responsible for it. Among other things, you agree that you are responsible for:

  • Payments: taking payment through your own payment processor, and complying with that processor's terms and all applicable payment, tax, and financial rules. Culture Cave never touches your funds.
  • Fulfilment and shipping: accurately fulfilling orders, packaging products safely and lawfully, and shipping in compliance with all carrier rules and applicable laws, including any regional restrictions on the products you sell.
  • Returns and refunds: setting and honoring your own clear returns, refund, and cancellation policies, and resolving disputes with your buyers directly.
  • Accurate listings: making sure your listings, descriptions, images, pricing, availability, and compliance statements are truthful, lawful, and not misleading. Spore listings must reflect microscopy, taxonomy, and legal gourmet use only.
  • Legal compliance: holding any licenses or registrations you need, collecting and remitting any taxes you owe, and complying with all laws that apply to your products and your customers.
  • Customer service and records: responding to your buyers and keeping the records your business and the law require.

6. Payments and orders

When you buy a product, you are buying it directly from the independent vendor who lists it, and your payment is processed by that vendor's own payment processor. Culture Cave is not a party to the sale and does not process, hold, route, or refund any payment.

Any questions about pricing, availability, order status, shipping, delivery, refunds, returns, or disputes should be directed to the vendor, not to Culture Cave. Because we do not handle funds or fulfilment, we cannot issue refunds, cancel orders, or intervene in the financial side of a transaction.

The vendor's own terms, refund policy, and privacy practices apply to your purchase. We encourage you to review them before you buy. If a dispute cannot be resolved with the vendor, your remedies are against the vendor under applicable consumer-protection and contract law, and through your payment provider where available.

7. Intellectual property

The Platform itself, including the Culture Cave name, logo, cave and mycology branding, site design, text we author, and software, is owned by Culture Cave or its licensors and is protected by intellectual-property laws. We grant you a limited, personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable license to use the Platform for its intended purpose. You may not copy, modify, distribute, sell, or create derivative works from our materials without our written permission.

Vendors retain ownership of the content they post, including their listings, product photos, and store descriptions. By posting content on the Platform, a vendor grants Culture Cave a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to host, display, reproduce, and promote that content for the purpose of operating and marketing the Platform. Vendors represent that they own or have the rights to the content they post and that it does not infringe anyone else's rights.

If you believe content on the Platform infringes your intellectual property, please contact us at info@culturecave.store with enough detail to identify the content and your rights, and we will review it.

8. Disclaimers and limitation of liability

The Platform is provided "as is" and "as available." To the fullest extent permitted by law, Culture Cave disclaims all warranties, express or implied, including any implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, title, and non-infringement. We do not warrant that the Platform will be uninterrupted, secure, or error-free, or that any listing is accurate, lawful, or safe.

Because Culture Cave is a platform and not the seller, we make no warranty about any product, vendor, transaction, payment, or shipment. Any dealing between a buyer and a vendor is solely between those two parties, and you use the Platform to find and connect with vendors at your own risk.

To the fullest extent permitted by law, Culture Cave and its owners, officers, and employees will not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages, or for any loss of profits, data, goodwill, or products, arising out of or related to your use of the Platform or any transaction with a vendor, even if we have been advised of the possibility of such damages.

To the fullest extent permitted by law, our total liability to you for any claim arising out of or related to the Platform will not exceed the greater of (a) the total subscription fees you paid to Culture Cave in the twelve months before the claim, or (b) one hundred US dollars (US $100). Some jurisdictions do not allow certain limitations, so some of the above may not apply to you.

9. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless Culture Cave and its owners, officers, and employees from any claims, losses, liabilities, damages, costs, and expenses (including reasonable legal fees) arising out of or related to your use of the Platform, your violation of these Terms, your violation of any law, or, if you are a vendor, your products, listings, and transactions with buyers.

10. Termination

You may stop using the Platform at any time. Vendors may cancel their subscription in accordance with the vendor subscription terms.

We may suspend or terminate your access to the Platform, remove a listing, or close an account at any time, with or without notice, if we reasonably believe you have violated these Terms, created legal or safety risk, or misused the Platform, or if we are required to do so by law. We may also discontinue all or part of the Platform.

Sections that by their nature should survive termination will survive, including intellectual property, disclaimers, limitation of liability, indemnification, and governing law.

11. Changes to these terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. When we make a material change, we will update the "Last updated" date and, where appropriate, provide additional notice. Your continued use of the Platform after changes take effect means you accept the updated Terms. If you do not agree, please stop using the Platform.

12. Governing law

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Colorado, USA, without regard to its conflict-of-laws rules. To the extent permitted by law, you agree that any dispute with Culture Cave will be brought in the state or federal courts located in Colorado, and you consent to the jurisdiction of those courts. Nothing here limits any mandatory consumer-protection rights you have under the laws of your home jurisdiction.

13. Contact

Questions about these Terms can be sent to info@culturecave.store. For questions about a specific order, product, shipment, or refund, please contact the vendor directly, since the vendor, not Culture Cave, handles payments and fulfilment.

Thank you for being part of the frontier of the culture. We built Culture Cave to give independent mycology vendors a real home and to help curious, responsible buyers find them. Keep it legal, keep it clean, and grow well.

Common questions

Is Culture Cave the seller of the products I buy?
No. Culture Cave is a platform that connects buyers with independent third-party vendors. Every product is sold by the vendor who lists it, not by Culture Cave. Your purchase contract is with that vendor.
Who handles my payment?
The vendor does, through their own payment processor. Culture Cave never touches your money. We do not process, hold, route, or refund payments, so questions about charges and refunds go to the vendor.
What can I legally use spores for?
Spores are sold strictly for microscopy, taxonomy, and legal gourmet cultivation only. Never for producing, cultivating, or consuming any controlled or psychoactive substance. You are responsible for knowing and following your local laws before you order.
Who do I contact about a late shipment or a return?
Contact the vendor directly. Vendors handle their own fulfilment, shipping, returns, and refunds. Culture Cave does not fulfil orders and cannot cancel, refund, or reship on a vendor's behalf.
Do I have to be 18?
Yes. You must be at least 18 years old to use the Platform, buy from a vendor, or sell as a vendor.
Is this document legal advice?
No. It is a plain-English template provided for convenience and must be reviewed and adapted by qualified legal counsel before Culture Cave relies on it.

Template notice: This document is a plain-English template provided for convenience only. It is not legal advice. It must be reviewed and adapted by qualified legal counsel before Culture Cave relies on it. Culture Cave LLC is based in Colorado, USA. General contact: info@culturecave.store. Last updated: July 4, 2026.