These terms govern your use of Group Buys ("the platform," "we," "us"). By using the platform you agree to them in full. Sections specific to how the marketplace actually operates are called out by name so there's no ambiguity about what you signed up for.
1. Acceptance
By creating an account, placing an order, listing as a vendor, or using the Peptides Calculator companion app, you accept these terms. The first time you sign in we ask you to acknowledge the platform's ground rules with a stored signature — that one-time acceptance is the binding event.
2. Eligibility
You confirm that you:
- Are at least 18 years old
- Have the legal capacity to enter into a binding contract in your jurisdiction
- Are not on any US or other applicable sanctions list
- Are using the platform for lawful research purposes only (see section 15)
If you're using the platform on behalf of a research institution or company, you also confirm you have authority to bind that entity.
3. Our role — we are a marketplace
Group Buys is a product of Sphnix, Inc and operates as a technology marketplace. We connect independent vendors who list group buys with buyers who participate in them. We do not manufacture, package, ship, lab-test, or warrant any product. We do not custody buyer funds at any point in any flow. The contract for each order is between you and the vendor; the platform is not a party.
4. Your account
One account per person. You are responsible for everything that happens under your account. Keep your password secret; if you suspect unauthorized access, email hello@groupbuys.app right away. We may rate-limit, suspend, or close accounts that show signs of abuse (rapid-fire sign-in attempts, bulk creation, etc.).
5. Vendors
If you sell on the platform as a vendor, additional terms apply. You are solely responsible for:
- The accuracy of product names, descriptions, prices, lot info, and stock levels
- Fulfilling paid orders within the timeframe you advertise
- Any third-party lab testing you've promised — including securing the actual test and providing the COA to buyers
- Buyer-facing communications about your products + orders
- Handling refund requests and disputes (the platform doesn't custody funds and can't compel a refund on your behalf)
- Collecting and remitting sales tax according to the rates you've configured for each state
- Compliance with all laws applicable to what you sell — including any export, import, customs, or research-use restrictions
- Maintaining accurate payment-method handles (PayPal, Venmo, Cash App, Zelle) so buyers can actually pay you
Vendor platform fees are debited from your pre-paid credit balance when you publish a group buy. Fees follow the published tier ladder (Starter / Small / Medium / Large / XL / Mega). You can upgrade a buy's tier mid-flight; you'll only be charged the delta. You cannot downgrade a published buy. We may change the fee schedule with notice.
6. Vendor identity verification
To become a vendor, you must complete an identity verification (KYC) flow run by our sub-processor, Didit. This step is mandatory and non-skippable; it happens once during application + again is mirrored to your user account so you don't re-verify at every sign-in. We use the verified identity to (a) prevent platform fraud, (b) comply with applicable anti-money-laundering rules, and (c) make sure the payment handles you accept route to the person we have on file.
What's collected + retained is detailed in the Privacy Policy. If your KYC is declined or expired, you cannot operate as a vendor on the platform. You may re-attempt verification by emailing hello@groupbuys.app.
7. Vendor credit (non-refundable)
Vendors fund group-buy launches by purchasing platform credit in advance. Top-up invoices are generated by our sub-processor, Invoiless, and you pay through the invoice's hosted PayPal or Stripe option.
The rules around credit:
- All credit purchases are NON-REFUNDABLE once paid. By completing payment on an Invoiless invoice you accept this rule.
- Credits sit on your vendor balance indefinitely — no expiry.
- Each group buy launch deducts its tier fee from your balance (Starter $99 → Mega $1,499).
- Once a group buy is published, the credit is committed — closing, expiring, or cancelling the buy does NOT refund the fee.
- Changing a published group buy's deadline (a "reschedule") triggers a paid reschedule at the full tier fee — it is the same charge as launching the buy from scratch.
- Tier upgrades mid-flight are billed only the delta (e.g. Small → Medium is the difference between the two tier fees, not the full Medium fee).
- Pending top-up invoices that aren't paid within 15 minutes are auto-cancelled. You may then create a new one.
- A vendor may only have one live (pending) invoice at a time; create a new one only after the previous one is paid or expires.
Disputed charges, chargebacks initiated against Invoiless or the underlying card network, or claims of "I changed my mind" are not grounds for refund. These terms — and the same non-refundable language reproduced on every invoice's notes section — are the binding agreement.
8. Custom domains + SSL
Vendors may serve their storefront under a custom domain (e.g. buy.your-brand.com)
in addition to the default /v/<slug> path. Once you register a domain
+ verify ownership via a TXT record, we call our hosting provider's API to add the
domain; their reverse proxy (Caddy) then issues a free Let's Encrypt
SSL certificate via the HTTP-01 challenge protocol on your behalf. The cert auto-renews
every ~60 days for as long as the domain remains registered. If you remove the domain,
we delete the registration and the cert is revoked.
Changing your storefront slug (or removing a custom domain) breaks existing bookmarks and order-confirmation links. Do this with care; the platform does not redirect old URLs to new ones.
9. Buying mechanics
If you join a group buy as a buyer:
- You commit to pay within 15 minutes of placing the order. Unpaid orders past this window auto-expire and your slot frees up for someone else.
- Each open buy has a fixed participant cap. Once full, no more orders are accepted on that buy.
- If a buy's deadline passes before you've completed payment, the buy closes and your order is cancelled.
- An expired or cancelled order doesn't charge you anything — you simply lost your slot.
- You may reorder if a slot opens up later (e.g. someone else's order expired).
10. Payments
Buyers pay vendors directly through the vendor's chosen payment apps (PayPal, Venmo, Cash App, Zelle). The platform never holds, routes, or otherwise custodies funds. After paying off-platform, you upload a screenshot of the confirmation to your order; the vendor manually verifies it and marks the order paid.
If you upload a forged or misleading receipt, your order may be cancelled, your account suspended, and (depending on jurisdiction) you may be subject to civil or criminal liability for fraud. We log every receipt upload with timestamp + IP.
11. Lab testing
When a vendor enables lab testing on a group buy, the testing cost is split evenly across all participant slots plus the vendor's own seat (the vendor's vials are what gets tested). Your share is shown on the order summary before you commit, and is snapshotted onto your order at checkout — it will not change even if the vendor later edits the buy.
The platform doesn't perform the testing — third-party labs do. The vendor is responsible for sending samples and distributing results. Group Buys does not guarantee accuracy of any test result.
12. Sales tax
Vendors configure a per-state sales tax table. At checkout, your shipping state is looked up against the vendor's table; if found, that rate is applied to subtotal + lab testing share and shown on your order. The rate, state code, and tax cents are snapshotted onto the order so they don't change after the fact.
The platform is not your tax advisor. Vendors are responsible for collecting + remitting the tax they configure.
13. Discount codes
Vendors may issue discount codes (percent off or fixed dollars off). A code applies only on the issuing vendor's storefront, may be limited to a window of dates, and may cap at a maximum number of uses. The platform may invalidate a code that's being misused.
14. Shipping
Vendors ship orders directly to buyers using the carrier they choose. Tracking numbers and carrier names appear on the order page after the vendor marks the order shipped. The platform does not generate shipping labels or handle returns.
15. Refunds + disputes
The refund policy for each order is set by the vendor, not the platform — it's shown in the vendor's per-order waiver you signed at checkout. If you can't reach resolution with a vendor, contact us at hello@groupbuys.app and we'll facilitate where we can, but the platform is not a party to your transaction and cannot compel a refund.
Because all sales involve research materials, vendors generally treat sales as final once the order is paid. Read the vendor's waiver carefully before confirming.
16. Waivers
You sign two layers of waivers when using the platform:
- Platform ground rules — signed once at signup, with a stored signature image + the exact waiver text snapshotted
- Vendor waiver — signed each time you place an order, with a fresh signature; covers terms specific to that vendor (handling, returns, lot-specific notes)
Both layers are stored as audit trail for the lifetime of the platform.
17. Acceptable use
You agree not to:
- Use the platform for any unlawful purpose, or for any purpose prohibited by these terms
- Misrepresent your identity or impersonate any person, company, or institution
- Attempt to circumvent rate limits, abuse-prevention, the onboarding waiver gate, or access controls
- Scrape vendor data, buyer data, or platform analytics at scale
- Reverse-engineer, decompile, or otherwise probe the platform's source code or infrastructure
- Place orders you do not intend to pay for, or upload forged payment receipts
- Interfere with the auto-expiration of orders (the 15-minute payment window is a fairness mechanism — gaming it harms other buyers)
- Use the platform to coordinate fraud, money-laundering, or any other activity prohibited by US or applicable foreign law
18. Research-use only
All products listed on Group Buys are intended for laboratory research only — they are not for human or veterinary consumption, medical, diagnostic, or household use. By purchasing, you confirm:
- You are a qualified researcher or operate a facility equipped to handle research materials safely and legally
- You will comply with all applicable laws around handling, storage, and disposal of research chemicals
- You will not consume, inject, ingest, apply, or administer any product to yourself, another person, or an animal
- You understand the vendor is not your medical provider and gives no medical advice
19. Intellectual property
The "Group Buys" name, logo, marketing copy, source code, and infrastructure are owned by us. Vendor brand assets (logos, product photos, descriptions) are owned by each vendor. You may not copy, redistribute, or republish any of this without written permission from the owner. The Peptides Calculator app and its mark are also ours.
20. Disclaimers
THE PLATFORM IS PROVIDED "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION ANY WARRANTY OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, NON-INFRINGEMENT, OR UNINTERRUPTED ACCESS. WE DO NOT WARRANT ANY PRODUCT'S SAFETY, PURITY, EFFICACY, OR FITNESS FOR ANY PARTICULAR USE. THIRD-PARTY LAB TEST RESULTS ARE THE LAB'S WORK PRODUCT — WE DO NOT INDEPENDENTLY VERIFY THEM.
21. Limitation of liability
TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, GROUP BUYS' TOTAL LIABILITY FOR ANY CLAIM ARISING OUT OF OR RELATED TO THE PLATFORM IS LIMITED TO THE GREATER OF (a) THE AMOUNT YOU PAID US IN PLATFORM FEES IN THE PRIOR 12 MONTHS, OR (b) ONE HUNDRED U.S. DOLLARS ($100). IN NO EVENT WILL WE BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, SPECIAL, PUNITIVE, OR EXEMPLARY DAMAGES, OR FOR LOST PROFITS, LOST REVENUE, LOST DATA, OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION.
22. Indemnification
You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless Group Buys (and its officers, employees, and contractors) from any claim, loss, liability, demand, or expense (including reasonable attorneys' fees) arising out of:
- Your use of the platform or any product purchased through it
- Your breach of these terms or any per-vendor waiver
- Your violation of any law or third-party right
- Content you submit (vendor listings, contact-form messages, etc.)
23. Termination
We may suspend or terminate your account at any time, with or without notice, if we reasonably believe you've violated these terms or applicable law, or if your activity creates risk for the platform, other users, or third parties. You may terminate your account at any time by emailing us — see the Privacy Policy for how deletion works.
24. Governing law + venue
These terms are governed by the laws of the Commonwealth of Virginia, USA, without regard to its conflict-of-laws principles. Disputes will be resolved in the state or federal courts located in Virginia, and you consent to personal jurisdiction there. If a binding-arbitration option is added in a future version of these terms, we'll notify you and give you a chance to opt out before it takes effect.
25. Changes
We may revise these terms from time to time. Material changes will be announced by email to active users at least 14 days before they take effect. Continued use after the effective date constitutes acceptance.
26. Contact
Email hello@groupbuys.app, or use the contact form.