Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

At Sozai Limited, we value your privacy and are committed to protecting your personal information.
This Privacy Policy explains how Sozai Limited (“Sozai”, “we”, “us” or “our”) collects, uses, stores and protects your personal information when you visit our website, book our services or interact with us.
This policy applies to our website, www.sozai.co.uk, and our activities, including cooking classes, workshops, private dining, catering, corporate events, gift vouchers and related services.
We process personal information in accordance with applicable UK data protection legislation, including the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR), the Data Protection Act 2018 and the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR), as amended.

2. Who We Are

Company name: Sozai Limited
Company registration number: 08229219
Registered office: 37 Waterloo Road, London NW2 7TS, United Kingdom
Email: info@sozai.co.uk
Website: www.sozai.co.uk
Sozai Limited is the data controller responsible for the personal information collected and processed in connection with our business activities.
For any privacy-related enquiries, please contact us using the details above.

3.Information We Collect

We may collect and process the following categories of personal information.

3.1 Personal and contact information
・Full name
・Email address
・Telephone number
・Billing address
・Contact details provided when making enquiries or bookings.

3.2 Booking and transaction information
・Cooking classes, events or services booked
・Booking dates and attendance records
・Payment and transaction details
・Gift voucher purchases and redemptions
・Booking preferences and special requests
・Invoices, refunds and payment history

3.3 Dietary and accessibility information
To provide a safe and enjoyable experience, we may collect information about:
・Food allergies and intolerances
・Dietary preferences or restrictions
・Accessibility requirements
・Other relevant information voluntarily provided to help us accommodate participants
Some of this information may constitute special category personal data under UK data protection law.

3.4 Communications and marketing information
・Enquiries and correspondence
・Customer feedback and reviews
・Newsletter subscriptions
・Marketing preferences and consent records

3.5 Website and technical information
When you visit our website, we may collect:
・IP address
・Browser and device information
・Website usage information
・Cookies and similar technology data
・Technical information necessary for website security and functionality

4. How We Collect Your Information

We collect personal information when you:
・Visit or use our website
・Create a customer account
・Book a cooking class, workshop or event
・Purchase a gift voucher
・Enquire about private dining, catering or corporate events
・Subscribe to our newsletter
・Contact us by email, telephone or online form
・Provide feedback or participate in promotional activities
We may also receive personal information from third parties, such as an employer, corporate event organiser or another person booking on your behalf.
Where we receive information from another person, we will handle it in accordance with this policy and provide relevant privacy information where required.

5. How We Use Your Information

We use your personal information for the following purposes:

5.1 Managing bookings and providing services
To process bookings, confirm reservations, send joining instructions, manage attendance, deliver classes and events, and communicate important information about your booking.

5.2 Customer service
To respond to enquiries, provide assistance, manage special requests, resolve complaints and maintain customer relationships.

5.3 Payments and financial administration
To process payments and refunds, issue invoices, maintain accounting records and comply with financial and tax obligations.

5.4 Dietary requirements and participant safety
To make appropriate arrangements for food allergies, intolerances, dietary requirements and accessibility needs.

5.5 Marketing and newsletters
To provide information about upcoming classes, workshops, events, offers and other Sozai activities where we are legally permitted to do so.

5.6 Website operation and improvement
To maintain our website, protect against security threats, analyse website performance where permitted and improve our products and services.

5.7 Legal obligations
To comply with applicable laws, respond to lawful requests and establish, exercise or defend legal claims.

6. Legal Basis for Processing Your Information

Under the UK GDPR, we rely on the following legal bases as appropriate:

Performance of a contract
Where processing is necessary to provide services you have booked or purchased, or to take steps at your request before entering into a contract.

Legal obligation
Where we are required to process information to comply with tax, accounting or other legal requirements.

Legitimate interests
Where processing is necessary for our legitimate business interests, such as providing customer service, maintaining website security, improving our services and managing business operations, provided these interests are not overridden by your rights and freedoms.

Consent
Where you have given consent for a specific purpose, such as certain marketing activities, non-essential cookies or the processing of particular sensitive information.
Where we rely on consent, you may withdraw it at any time.

Special category information
Information concerning allergies, health conditions or accessibility needs may qualify as special category personal data.
Where we process such information, we will identify an appropriate lawful basis and an additional condition under Article 9 of the UK GDPR, such as explicit consent where appropriate.
We will use this information only for relevant purposes, including participant safety and reasonable service arrangements.

7. Online Bookings and Payments

Payments made through our website may be processed by Stripe, our third-party payment service provider.
Sozai receives the information necessary to confirm bookings, manage transactions, issue refunds and maintain financial records.
We do not routinely receive or store your full payment card number or card security code.
For more information, please refer to Stripe’s Privacy Policy

8. Marketing Communications and Newsletters

We may contact you with information about our cooking classes, events, workshops, special offers and related activities.
We will only send electronic marketing communications where permitted by applicable law, including where:
・You have given your consent; or
・You are an existing customer and the legal requirements for marketing similar products or services are satisfied.
You may opt out of marketing communications at any time by clicking the unsubscribe link in our marketing emails or contacting info@sozai.co.uk.
You have the right to object to the use of your personal information for direct marketing at any time.
We will respect your request and stop processing your information for that purpose.
Unsubscribing from marketing will not affect essential communications concerning an existing booking or transaction.
We do not sell or rent personal information to third parties for their marketing purposes.

9. Photography and Video

Photographs and videos may be taken during our cooking classes, workshops and events for use on our website, social media channels or other promotional materials.
Where identifiable individuals are featured, we will ensure that we have an appropriate legal basis for using their images and obtain consent where required.
If you prefer not to appear in promotional photographs or videos, please inform us before or during the event.
We will make reasonable efforts to respect your wishes.
If you have concerns about an image featuring you, please contact info@sozai.co.uk.
Requests for removal will be considered in accordance with applicable data protection law.

10. Sharing Your Information

We may share personal information with trusted third parties where necessary to operate our business and deliver our services.
These may include:
・Payment processing providers
・Website hosting and maintenance providers
・Booking and event management platforms
・Email marketing and communication providers
・Accountants and professional advisers
・Cooking instructors, catering personnel and event partners
・Regulatory authorities and public bodies where required by law
We only share information that is reasonably necessary for the relevant purpose.
Where service providers process personal information on our behalf, we require appropriate data protection and confidentiality safeguards.
We do not sell customer personal information.

11. International Data Transfers

Some of our service providers may process or store personal information outside the United Kingdom.
Where personal information is transferred internationally, we will ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place in accordance with UK data protection law.
These may include transfers covered by UK adequacy regulations or approved contractual safeguards, together with any additional measures required.
You may contact us for further information about the safeguards applicable to your personal information.

12. Cookies and Website Analytics

Our website may use cookies and similar technologies to provide essential functionality, improve performance and understand how visitors use our website.
Cookies may include:

Essential cookies
Required for website functionality, security, account access, bookings and payment processing.

Functional cookies
Used to remember preferences and support additional website features.

Analytics cookies
Used to understand website traffic, visitor behaviour and website performance.

Marketing cookies
Where enabled, these may help us measure the effectiveness of promotional activities.
We will provide information about the cookies used on our website and obtain consent where required by law.
You can manage cookies through your browser settings and any cookie preference controls provided on our website.
Further details about the specific cookies used, their purposes, providers and retention periods should be available through our cookie information or preference settings.

13. How Long We Keep Your Information

We retain personal information only for as long as necessary for the purposes for which it was collected, including meeting legal, accounting, tax and regulatory obligations.
Retention periods vary depending on the nature of the information.

Booking and transaction records
Retained for as long as necessary to meet contractual, accounting, tax and legal requirements.

Customer correspondence
Retained for as long as reasonably necessary to manage customer relationships, enquiries, complaints and potential disputes.

Dietary and allergy information
Retained only for as long as necessary to provide the relevant service, manage safety requirements or meet applicable legal obligations.

Marketing information
Retained while you remain subscribed or until it is no longer required. We may retain limited information to ensure that your marketing preferences and opt-out requests continue to be respected.

Website technical information
Retained according to operational needs, applicable legal requirements and the retention settings of relevant service providers.
When information is no longer required, we will securely delete or anonymise it.

14. How We Protect Your Information

We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal information against unauthorised access, accidental loss, misuse, alteration or disclosure.
These measures may include:
・Secure payment processing
・Access controls and password protection
・Restricted access to customer information
・Use of reputable service providers
・Appropriate confidentiality and data protection procedures
Although we take reasonable precautions, no electronic transmission or storage system can be guaranteed to be completely secure.

15. Your Data Protection Rights

Under UK data protection law, you may have the following rights, subject to applicable conditions and exceptions:

Right of access
To request a copy of the personal information we hold about you.

Right to rectification
To request correction of inaccurate or incomplete information.

Right to erasure
To request deletion of your personal information in certain circumstances.

Right to restrict processing
To request that we limit how your personal information is used in certain circumstances.

Right to object
To object to processing based on legitimate interests and to direct marketing.

Right to data portability
To receive certain personal information in a structured, commonly used, machine-readable format or request its transfer to another organisation where applicable.

Right to withdraw consent
To withdraw consent at any time where consent is the legal basis for processing.

Rights relating to automated decision-making
To exercise applicable rights in relation to qualifying solely automated decisions.

To exercise your rights, please email info@sozai.co.uk.
We may need to verify your identity before processing a request.
We will respond within the time limits required by applicable law, normally within one month.

16. Children’s Personal Information

Some of our cooking classes, workshops or private events may involve children.
Where necessary, we may collect limited personal information about children from their parents, guardians or authorised booking organisers.
This information will only be used for appropriate purposes, such as managing participation, dietary requirements and safety.
We will take particular care when handling children’s personal information and obtain parental or guardian consent where legally required.
We will not knowingly use children’s personal information for direct marketing without an appropriate legal basis.

17. Information You Provide About Other People

If you make a booking on behalf of another person, you may provide us with their name, contact details, dietary requirements or other relevant information.
You should ensure that you are authorised to share this information and that the individual is made aware of how their information will be used.
We will only use such information for legitimate purposes associated with providing our services and meeting applicable legal obligations.

18. Third-Party Websites

Our website may contain links to third-party websites, social media platforms, payment providers or external booking services.
These organisations may operate their own privacy policies and data processing practices.
We are not responsible for the privacy practices of third-party websites and encourage you to review their policies before providing personal information.

19. Information Required to Make a Booking

Certain personal information, such as your name, contact details and payment information, may be necessary to complete a booking or purchase.
If you do not provide the required information, we may be unable to process your booking or deliver the requested service.
Other information, such as dietary preferences or accessibility requirements, is generally optional, although not providing relevant details may limit our ability to make suitable arrangements.

20. Complaints

If you have any questions or concerns about how we collect or use your personal information, please contact us at: info@sozai.co.uk We will investigate your concerns and aim to resolve them promptly.
You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), the UK’s independent data protection regulator.

Information Commissioner’s Office
Website: https://ico.org.uk
Telephone: 0303 123 1113

21. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our business activities, services, technology or legal requirements.
The latest version will be published on our website with an updated revision date.
Where changes materially affect how we use personal information, we will provide additional notice where required by law.

22. Contact Us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or how we handle personal information, please contact:
Sozai Limited
Company Registration No. 08229219
Registered Office: 37 Waterloo Road, London NW2 7TS, United Kingdom
Email: info@sozai.co.uk
Website: www.sozai.co.uk

Last updated: 19 October 2026