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How it Works
You find something that means something to you. We make it. And hopefully a little good travels with it.
Love Ray isn't trying to fill a giant warehouse.
We're starting with a small collection of things we actually care about—apparel, artwork, books, cards, gifts and everyday pieces that have a reason for being here.
Some might make you laugh. Some might carry a story. Some might remind somebody that they matter.
And some might just be a really comfortable shirt.
...that's okay too.
Our goal isn't to convince you that buying something will change the world.
Our goal is to make things thoughtfully, tell you honestly how they work, and build a company where creativity, commerce and care can live together.
MADE WHEN YOU ORDER IT
We don't have a warehouse full of 4,000 shirts hoping somebody eventually wants one. Many of our physical products are made using print-on-demand. That means they're produced after somebody actually orders them. For many of our products, we work with Printful, a production and fulfillment company that prints, packs and ships the product for us.
For a small company like Love Ray, it allows us to create more things without buying huge amounts of inventory ahead of time. It also means we're producing closer to actual demand instead of guessing what people might buy months in advance. That can help reduce overproduction and unsold inventory—products that were manufactured but never found a home. Print-on-demand still uses materials, energy, packaging and transportation, so we're not going to pretend that making and shipping things has no environmental impact. It's simply one practical way we can try to make what people actually want instead of making piles of things and hoping somebody eventually wants them.
Made after you order. Made because somebody actually wanted it.
That's a pretty reasonable place for us to start.
WHY?
WHERE DOES THE MONEY GO?
This part matters to us. When you buy something from Love Ray, the entire price doesn't simply become money in our pocket. There are costs involved in making the product and operating the company behind it. Depending on the product, your purchase may help cover things like:
making the product → processing the order → operating and growing Love Ray → giving and support
And this is where we want to be careful with our words. Not every Love Ray product will have the same giving structure. Some products may have a specific dollar amount set aside for giving. Some may be connected to a particular project, person, organization, animal cause or community effort. Other purchases may help us keep Love Ray operating and growing so we're able to continue building the larger mission. And where Love Ray directs support can change as needs and opportunities change. That could mean helping a person, supporting an animal-related cause, contributing to a community effort, helping a creative project, or finding another place where a little support can genuinely matter.
When a product has a specific giving commitment attached to it, we'll tell you what it is. We don't want to hide behind phrases like “a portion of proceeds” when we can give you something more useful. And we don't want to promise that every purchase performs some enormous act of good.
We're starting small on purpose. As Love Ray grows, we'd like our ability to help people, animals, communities and worthwhile ideas grow with it. We'd rather show you what we're actually doing than make a bigger promise than we can keep.
SHIPPING
First we make it. Then it heads your way.
Because many Love Ray products are made after they're ordered, there are generally two parts to the wait: Production + Shipping. Printful currently estimates a typical fulfillment window of roughly 2–5 business days once an order is waiting for fulfillment, although actual timing can vary by product and circumstances. After an order ships, tracking information becomes available. Carrier tracking can sometimes take up to about 24 hours to begin showing movement. Some orders may also arrive in more than one shipment. So if one part of your order shows up before another, don't immediately assume somebody lost your other shirt behind a couch.
If something looks genuinely wrong, contact us.
We'll help figure out what happened.
RETURNS, REFUNDS & UH-OH
Sometimes things go sideways.
I changed my mind / ordered the wrong size or color.
Because many of our products are made specifically when they're ordered, our return process is a little different from a traditional store with shelves full of inventory.
Please check product descriptions and sizing information carefully before ordering.
For made-to-order Printful products, Printful does not provide returns or exchanges for buyer's remorse or when the customer selected the wrong size or color.
We know that's not the world's most exciting policy. But we'd rather tell you before you order. And if you do make an honest mistake, contact us anyway. We can't promise that we'll be able to replace or refund a made-to-order product when the order itself was produced correctly, but we'd still rather hear from you than simply say, “Sorry, policy says no.”
As Love Ray grows, we'd like to explore reasonable ways of helping in situations like these—possibly through a future-order courtesy or another small solution when circumstances allow. For now, those situations will be handled individually and aren't a guaranteed refund, replacement or discount.
we can do. Once an order has moved farther along, additional shipping costs or other limitations may apply.
My product arrived damaged, defective, misprinted or wrong.
That's an uh-oh. Tell us. For qualifying fulfillment errors—including damaged, defective or misprinted products—there is a refund or replacement process. Clear photographs may be required to document the problem.
Please contact Love Ray as soon as possible with:
Your name · order number · what happened · clear photos when applicable
These problems generally need to be reported within the applicable claim window, so please don't leave the box sitting in the corner until holidays.
We'll help work through the problem with you.
My package never arrived.
Start with your tracking information. If the package appears to have been lost in transit, contact us. We'll help determine the next step.
I entered the wrong address.
Please check your address carefully before completing your order. If you notice an address mistake immediately, contact us immediately. Depending on where the order is in production or shipping, there may still be something we can do. Once an order has moved farther along, additional shipping costs or other limitations may apply.
I need to cancel or change my order.
Again: contact us quickly. Because production can begin shortly after an order is submitted, there may only be a small window for changes. We'll do what we reasonably can, but once your product is already being made, we may not be able to stop or change it.
NEED SOME HELP?
You don't need to figure out who made the shirt, who carried the box or which system did what. You bought it from Love Ray. Start with us.
If you've got a question about a product, an order, shipping, a damaged item, or something on this page that doesn't make sense, send us a note through our Contact page.
The Love Ray Company is still a small company being built in real life, so we may not always respond instantly.
But we'll do our best to respond with care.
THE REALLY SHORT VERSION
We make things we care about. Many are made only after somebody orders them. We try to tell you honestly how the process works. When a product includes a specific giving commitment, we'll tell you what that commitment is. If something goes wrong, start with us. And as Love Ray grows, we hope the amount of good we're able to do grows with it.
Stay good, stay safe.
The Love Ray Company
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