How Cotara works

011. The piece starts in the workshop

Every piece is made by an artisan whose name and region are published on the product page. It is not an anonymous brand: the work has an author.

If the piece is made from camelid fibre, the page includes the micronage measured in a laboratory, the category derived from it under Peruvian Technical Standard 231.301, the natural colour, the breeder's name and the date of the laboratory report. You can check that figure against the certificate.

When a page has no laboratory report, the fibre section does not appear. Absence is information, not an empty field.

022. The price is set by the server, not the browser

When you add a piece to your cart, the server calculates the price at that moment. No monetary value comes from the client: the browser only sends which piece and how many units. This prevents the price from being altered in transit.

The base price is in Peruvian soles (PEN). If you see the equivalent in dollars, it is a reference conversion updated daily; the charge is always made in PEN.

033. The order records the artisan

When you confirm the purchase, the order records the artisan for each piece, the price at the time of the transaction, the exchange rate and the equivalent in both currencies. That record is immutable: changing a product's price does not rewrite previous orders.

Payment data is handled directly by the payment gateway. Card numbers do not pass through our servers.

044. The piece leaves the workshop

Once payment is confirmed, the artisan prepares the shipment. You receive an email with a tracking number when the piece leaves the workshop.

The shipping cost and estimated delivery time are shown before you confirm payment, calculated for the destination you provide.

055. If something is not right

We accept returns for pieces that arrive damaged or do not match the description. To start a return, write to us with your order number and a photograph. Details are on the help page.

06About the name Cotara

Cotara is a Quechua word that means mutual work and reciprocity between communities. It is the working name of this project; a trademark search is still pending. Until that concludes, the name may change.