Cookie Policy
Table of Contents
🍪 We keep cookies simple and minimal. We use only the cookies we need to run the platform, keep you logged in, and understand how the site is used. We do not use advertising or tracking cookies.
1. What Are Cookies?
Cookies are small text files that are stored on your device (computer, tablet, or mobile) when you visit a website. They allow the website to remember information about your visit — such as your login status, preferences, and how you use the site.
Similar technologies include local storage, session storage, and pixel tags, which we may also use for the same purposes described in this policy.
Cookies are not viruses. They cannot access other files on your device or install software. They are simply small data files used to improve your experience.
2. How We Use Cookies
WishThrift uses cookies for three main purposes:
- Essential operation: keeping you logged in, maintaining your session, securing your account, and enabling core platform features like the shopping cart and checkout
- Performance & analytics: understanding which pages are visited, how long users stay, and where they come from — so we can improve the platform
- Preferences: remembering your settings such as location radius, currency preference, and cookie consent choices
We do not use cookies for targeted advertising, behavioural tracking across other websites, or selling data to third parties.
3. Cookie Categories
We classify cookies into the following categories:
| Category | Description | Consent Required? |
|---|---|---|
| Essential Required |
Necessary for the platform to function. Without these, you cannot log in, use the cart, or complete checkout. These cannot be disabled. | No — required for service |
| Functional / Preferences Optional |
Remember your settings and preferences to improve your experience (e.g. location radius, recently viewed items). | Yes — requires consent |
| Analytics Optional |
Help us understand how visitors use the site (pages visited, time on site, referral source). Data is anonymised or aggregated. | Yes — requires consent |
| Advertising / Marketing Not Used |
We do not currently use advertising or marketing cookies. If we introduce them in future, we will request explicit consent first. | N/A — not currently used |
4. Cookies We Use
| Cookie Name | Category | Purpose | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
wordpress_logged_in_* |
Essential | WordPress authentication — keeps you logged in | Session / 14 days |
wordpress_sec_* |
Essential | WordPress security cookie — prevents CSRF attacks | Session |
woocommerce_cart_hash |
Essential | Identifies your shopping cart contents | Session |
woocommerce_items_in_cart |
Essential | Tracks whether items are in your cart | Session |
wp_woocommerce_session_* |
Essential | Maintains your session data (cart, checkout state) | 2 days |
wt_location_radius |
Functional | Remembers your preferred location search radius | 30 days |
wt_cookie_consent |
Essential | Stores your cookie consent preferences | 1 year |
_ga, _gid |
Analytics | Google Analytics — tracks site usage (anonymised) | 2 years / 24 hours |
litespeed_* |
Essential | LiteSpeed Cache — serves optimised cached pages for faster load times | Session |
This list is updated when we add or remove cookies. Last reviewed: May 2026.
5. Third-Party Cookies
Some cookies are set by third-party services we use. We have no direct control over these cookies — they are governed by each service’s own privacy and cookie policies.
Stripe (Payment Processing)
Stripe sets cookies during the checkout process to detect fraud, remember payment preferences, and manage the checkout session. These are essential for payments to work. Stripe’s cookie policy is available at stripe.com/cookie-settings.
Google Analytics (If Enabled)
If you consent to analytics cookies, we use Google Analytics to understand site usage. Google Analytics data is anonymised — we cannot identify you personally from it. You can opt out of Google Analytics across all sites at tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout.
Google Fonts
We load fonts from Google Fonts. Google may set cookies or log your IP address when fonts are requested. No personal data is stored by Google for this purpose. You can review Google’s privacy policy at google.com/privacy.
6. Your Cookie Choices
When you first visit WishThrift, a cookie consent banner will appear. You can:
- Accept all: Allow essential, functional, and analytics cookies
- Essential only: Allow only the cookies strictly necessary for the platform to work
- Customise: Choose which optional categories to allow
You can change your cookie preferences at any time by clicking the “Cookie Settings” link in the footer of any page. Your preferences are saved for 1 year.
Withdrawing consent for optional cookies will not affect the lawfulness of any processing that occurred while consent was given.
7. Managing Cookies in Your Browser
In addition to our consent tool, you can manage cookies directly in your browser. Here’s how to access cookie settings in common browsers:
Clearing all cookies will log you out of WishThrift and reset your preferences. Essential session cookies will be recreated when you next visit.
8. Impact of Disabling Cookies
Disabling different cookie categories will have different effects on your experience:
| If you disable… | What happens |
|---|---|
| Essential cookies | You will not be able to log in, use the cart, or complete purchases. Core platform features will break. We do not recommend disabling essential cookies. |
| Functional / Preference cookies | Your location radius and other preferences will reset each visit. Minor inconvenience, core functionality unaffected. |
| Analytics cookies | We will not be able to track your session for analytics purposes. No effect on your platform experience. |
9. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Cookie Policy when we add or remove cookies, change service providers, or when legal requirements change. The “last updated” date at the top of this page reflects the most recent revision.
If we introduce new cookie categories (particularly advertising cookies), we will update our consent banner to request fresh consent before placing those cookies.
10. Contact Us
If you have questions about our use of cookies or this policy:
- Privacy email: privacy@wishthrift.com
- General: hello@wishthrift.com
For complaints about our use of cookies, you may also contact the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) at ico.org.uk.