Privacy policy

Last updated: September 26, 2026

Maar's Music is an independent music store in Peterborough, Ontario, open since 1993. This policy explains what personal information we collect, why we collect it, who we share it with, and the choices you have. It covers our website (maarsmusic.com), online orders, and in-store sales and services, including repairs, Apple service, music lessons and A/V installation.

We've organized this policy around the fair information principles in Canada's federal private-sector privacy law, the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA).

Who is responsible for your information

Maar's Music is responsible for the personal information we collect. Our Privacy Officer handles privacy questions and requests:

Markus Maar, Owner
Maar's Music, 869 Chemong Road, Unit 21, Peterborough, ON K9H 5Z5, Canada
Email: sales@maarsmusic.com
Phone: (705) 876-8160

What we collect

When you place an order or create an account: your name, email address, phone number, billing and shipping addresses, what you bought, and your order history. If you create an account, we also keep your login details.

When you pay: payments are processed by our payment providers (see "Who we share it with"). We don't see or store your full credit card number.

When you contact us: anything you send us by live chat, email, phone or in person, such as questions about gear, special orders or repairs.

When you sign up for our emails: your email address and your consent to hear from us.

When you use our website: technical and usage information, such as your IP address, device and browser type, pages you view, products you look at or add to your cart, how you got to our site, and roughly where you are (based on your IP address). Much of this is collected with cookies and similar tools (see "Cookies, analytics and ads").

When you use our in-store services: for repairs and Apple service, your contact details and details about your instrument or device. For music lessons, the student's name and contact details, plus a parent's or guardian's details if the student is a minor.

Why we use it

We use your information to:

  • process, ship and track your orders, and handle returns, exchanges and warranty claims
  • answer your questions and give you advice about gear
  • arrange special orders, pre-orders, repairs, service, lessons and installations
  • send you order updates and service messages
  • send you marketing emails, if you've agreed to get them
  • understand how people use our website so we can improve it
  • show our ads to people who may be interested in our products
  • prevent fraud and keep our website and checkout secure
  • meet our legal, tax and accounting obligations

We'll only use your information for these purposes, or for other purposes you agree to or that the law allows.

Your consent

We ask for your consent to collect, use and share your personal information, unless the law allows otherwise. Sometimes consent is implied. For example, when you place an order, you agree to us using your address to ship it. For other things, like marketing emails, we ask you directly.

You can withdraw your consent at any time by contacting us, subject to legal or contract limits. If you do, we may not be able to provide some services. For example, we can't ship an order without an address.

Who we share it with

We don't sell your personal information for money. We share it only with service providers that help us run our business, and only as much as they need to do their job. Right now these include:

  • Online store and checkout: Shopify hosts our website, checkout and customer accounts.
  • Payments: Shopify Payments and Shop Pay, Apple Pay, major credit cards, and other payment methods shown at checkout.
  • Financing: Affirm offers pay-over-time financing on our site. If you apply for financing, Affirm collects your information under its own privacy policy.
  • Shipping: shipping carriers such as Canada Post and UPS get your name, address and phone number to deliver your order.
  • Live chat: Shopify Inbox runs the chat on our website.
  • Email marketing: Shopify Email (part of Shopify), which we use to send our newsletter.
  • Analytics and advertising: Google (Google Analytics, Google Ads and Google Merchant Center), Meta (the Meta Pixel for Facebook and Instagram) and other analytics tools receive information about your visits and purchases. We use it to understand how our site is used, measure our ads, and show ads to people who may be interested.
  • Embedded content: videos on our site are hosted by YouTube (Google), and our Instagram feed is shown using the Instafeed app. When you view these, the providers may collect information about your visit.
  • Site search: a site search app handles product searches on our site.
  • Manufacturers and distributors: when we handle a warranty claim, special order or authorized repair for you. For Apple repairs, Apple receives your device and contact details as part of the authorized service process.
  • Reverb: if you buy from us on Reverb, Reverb collects your information under its own privacy policy and sends us what we need to fill your order.

We may also share information:

  • with professional advisors, such as our accountant or lawyer
  • when the law requires it, or to protect our rights, our customers or the public
  • with a buyer, if our business is sold or reorganized. They must protect your information the same way.

Storage outside Canada

Some of our service providers, including Shopify, Google and Meta, store or process information outside Canada, for example in the United States or Europe. When your information is outside Canada, the laws of that country apply, and courts, police or government agencies there may be able to access it. We choose providers that commit to protecting personal information.

How long we keep it

We keep personal information only as long as we need it for the reasons above, or as long as the law requires:

  • Financial and tax records, such as orders and invoices: six years, as the Canada Revenue Agency requires.
  • Repair and service records, including Apple device repairs: five years after the repair is completed. After that, we remove your personal details and keep only the amounts needed for our tax records.
  • Lesson and chat records: two years after our last interaction with you.
  • Customer accounts: until you ask us to delete your account, or after three years without activity.
  • Unsubscribed email addresses: if you unsubscribe, we keep your email address only on a do-not-email list, so we can make sure we respect your request.

When we no longer need information, we delete it or make it anonymous.

How we protect it

We use reasonable safeguards to protect your information. Our website and checkout use encrypted (HTTPS) connections, card payments are handled by payment providers that meet card industry security standards, and only staff who need personal information to do their work can access it. Paper records in our store are kept secured, and only staff who need them can access them.

No system is completely secure. If a privacy breach creates a real risk of significant harm to you, we'll let you know and report it as the law requires.

Cookies, analytics and ads

Cookies are small files stored in your browser. We and our service providers use them, along with pixels and similar tools, to:

  • make the site work, for example to keep items in your cart and handle checkout
  • remember your preferences
  • understand how visitors use our site (Google Analytics and other analytics tools)
  • measure and show our ads on Google, YouTube, Facebook and Instagram (Google Ads and the Meta Pixel)

You can block or delete cookies at any time in your browser settings, and use the opt-out links below.

Ways to opt out:

  • Block or delete cookies in your browser settings. The cart and checkout need some cookies to work.
  • Opt out of Google Analytics with Google's browser add-on: https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout
  • Manage how Google uses your information for ads: https://myadcenter.google.com
  • Manage ads on Facebook and Instagram in your Meta account's ad preferences.
  • Opt out of interest-based ads from many companies through the Digital Advertising Alliance of Canada: https://youradchoices.ca

Marketing emails

We only send marketing emails, like new arrivals, sales and store news, if you've agreed to get them, or if Canada's Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL) otherwise allows it, for example after a recent purchase. Every marketing email includes our contact information and an unsubscribe link. You can also email us at sales@maarsmusic.com to unsubscribe. We'll process your request within 10 business days. Even if you unsubscribe, you'll still get messages about your orders and services.

Children

Our website is meant for adults and isn't aimed at children. We don't knowingly collect personal information online from children under 13. If you think a child has given us personal information, contact us and we'll delete it. For music lessons with young students, we collect information from a parent or guardian.

Seeing and correcting your information

You can ask to see the personal information we hold about you, how we've used it and who we've shared it with. You can also ask us to correct anything that's wrong. Send your request to our Privacy Officer. We may need to confirm your identity first. We'll respond within 30 days and will tell you if we need more time. There's usually no cost. If there is, we'll tell you before we go ahead. If we can't give you some information, for example because of the law, we'll explain why.

You can also ask us to delete your information. We'll delete it unless we need to keep it, for example for tax records.

Questions and complaints

If you have a question or concern about privacy, please contact our Privacy Officer, Markus Maar, at sales@maarsmusic.com or (705) 876-8160. We'll do our best to sort it out.

If you're not satisfied with our response, you can complain to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada:

Links to other websites

Our site links to other websites, such as Reverb, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. Their privacy practices are their own, so please read their privacy policies.

Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time. When we do, we'll post the new version here and change the "Last updated" date. If we make a significant change, we'll tell you more directly, for example with a notice on our website.