Terms of Service

01About these terms

These Terms of Service ("Terms") govern the relationship between Quarterdeck Labs ("we", "us", "our") and any person or entity ("you", "Client") who engages our services, accesses our website at www.quarterdecklabs.com, or purchases a Growth Audit or retainer engagement.

By engaging our services — including by submitting a contact form, booking a Growth Audit, or signing a Statement of Work or Service Agreement — you agree to be bound by these Terms.

These Terms should be read alongside our Privacy Policy, which explains how we handle your personal information.

02Who we are

Quarterdeck Labs is an embedded growth agency providing export strategy, AI & automation, and international marketing services to Australian METS, manufacturing and defence companies.

• Business name: Quarterdeck Labs
• ABN: 30 696 770 055
• Registered address: 81-83 Campbell Street, Surry Hills NSW 2010
• Contact email: info@quarterdecklabs.com
• Website: www.quarterdecklabs.com

03Scope of services

Quarterdeck Labs provides the following categories of services to eligible clients:

• Export Strategy & Pipeline — market-entry strategy, international business development, prospect research, and government grant navigation
• AI & Automation — design and implementation of AI-assisted workflows, automation systems, and tools to support business development and operations
• Full-Stack Marketing — content strategy, LinkedIn presence, outbound campaigns, and brand development, delivered on an ongoing basis
• Growth Audit — a fixed-scope diagnostic engagement (see Section 4)

The specific scope, deliverables, timelines and fees for any engagement will be set out in a written Statement of Work ("SOW") or Service Agreement agreed between you and Quarterdeck Labs before work commences. In the event of any inconsistency between these Terms and a signed SOW or Service Agreement, the SOW or Service Agreement prevails to the extent of the inconsistency.

We reserve the right to decline or discontinue any engagement at our discretion, including where we determine the engagement is not a suitable fit for our services.

04Growth Audit

The Growth Audit is a fixed-scope, single-engagement service priced at AUD $1,000 (excluding GST). It is designed to give Australian METS, manufacturing and defence companies a clear, actionable picture of their export and growth opportunities.

The Growth Audit typically includes a structured discovery session (conducted via video call), a written report, and a debrief call. The specific deliverables will be confirmed in writing before the engagement begins.

The Growth Audit does not constitute legal, financial, or investment advice. Recommendations contained in the Growth Audit report represent our professional assessment based on information provided by you and are not a guarantee of outcomes. You remain responsible for any decisions made on the basis of our recommendations.

Completion of a Growth Audit does not obligate either party to enter into a retainer or ongoing engagement.

05Retainer engagements

Ongoing retainer engagements are typically structured as embedded, fixed-term arrangements (commonly 12 months), with scope, deliverables, review cadence and fees agreed in a signed Service Agreement.

Retainer engagements are designed for clients who want Quarterdeck Labs operating as an embedded growth partner — executing export strategy, AI & automation build-outs, and marketing functions inside their business on an ongoing basis.

Key terms applicable to retainer engagements include:

• Retainer fees are invoiced monthly in advance unless otherwise agreed in writing
• Scope changes during a retainer period must be agreed in writing between the parties
• Either party may terminate the retainer in accordance with Section 10 of these Terms
• Any third-party costs (such as advertising spend, software subscriptions, or event fees) are passed through at cost and invoiced separately, unless explicitly included in the retainer fee

06Payment terms

All fees quoted by Quarterdeck Labs are in Australian dollars (AUD) and are exclusive of GST unless otherwise stated. GST will be added to invoices where applicable.

• Growth Audit: payment of AUD $1,000 (plus GST) is due in full prior to commencement of the engagement. We will issue a tax invoice upon booking confirmation
• Retainer engagements: fees are invoiced monthly in advance unless otherwise specified in the Service Agreement
• Payment due date: invoices are due for payment within 14 days of the invoice date unless otherwise agreed in writing
• Late payment: we reserve the right to suspend delivery of services if an invoice remains unpaid for more than 7 days beyond the due date, without prejudice to any other rights we may have
• Disputed invoices: if you dispute an invoice in good faith, notify us in writing within 7 days of receipt, and we will work to resolve the dispute promptly

07Intellectual property

Client materials. You retain ownership of all intellectual property you provide to us — including your brand assets, business data, existing documents, and proprietary information. You grant us a limited, non-exclusive licence to use these materials solely to the extent necessary to deliver the agreed services.

Deliverables. Upon receipt of full payment for the relevant engagement, ownership of the final deliverables produced specifically for you (such as the Growth Audit report, strategy documents, or custom marketing assets) transfers to you.

Our pre-existing IP and tools. We retain ownership of all pre-existing intellectual property, methodologies, frameworks, templates, and tools that we bring to an engagement or develop independently of your instruction. Where we incorporate pre-existing IP into your deliverables, we grant you a perpetual, non-exclusive, royalty-free licence to use that IP for your own internal business purposes.

Case studies and portfolio. Unless you request otherwise in writing, we may reference the general nature of our engagement with you (for example, "worked with an Australian METS company to develop an export pipeline into Southeast Asia") in our portfolio, proposals, or marketing materials, without disclosing any confidential or commercially sensitive information.

08Confidentiality

Both parties acknowledge that in the course of an engagement, each may receive or have access to confidential information belonging to the other party.

Confidential information means any information that is by its nature confidential or is designated as confidential, including business plans, financial information, client lists, pricing, trade secrets, and unpublished technical data.

Each party agrees to:

• Keep the other party's confidential information strictly confidential
• Not disclose confidential information to any third party without prior written consent, except where disclosure is required by law or to professional advisors under duties of confidentiality
• Use confidential information only for the purposes of the engagement
• Take reasonable steps to protect confidential information from unauthorised access or disclosure

Confidentiality obligations do not apply to information that: (a) is or becomes publicly known through no breach of these Terms; (b) was already known to the receiving party at the time of disclosure; or (c) is independently developed by the receiving party without use of the confidential information.

Confidentiality obligations survive the termination of any engagement for a period of two (2) years.

09Limitation of liability

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable Australian law:

• Our total aggregate liability to you for any claim arising out of or in connection with our services is limited to the total fees paid by you to us in the three (3) months immediately preceding the event giving rise to the claim
• We are not liable for any indirect, incidental, consequential, or special loss or damage — including loss of profits, loss of revenue, loss of data, or loss of business opportunity — arising from or in connection with our services, even if we have been advised of the possibility of such loss
• We provide our services on the basis of information supplied by you. We are not responsible for the accuracy or completeness of information you provide, and our recommendations are based on that information
• We do not guarantee any particular commercial outcome, export result, grant award, or business performance arising from our services

Nothing in these Terms limits or excludes any guarantee, warranty, right or remedy that cannot be excluded or limited under the Australian Consumer Law (Schedule 2 to the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth)), including any applicable consumer guarantees for services. Where our services are supplied to a consumer within the meaning of the Australian Consumer Law, our liability for a failure to comply with a consumer guarantee is limited to the re-supply of those services or payment of the cost of having those services re-supplied.

10Termination

Growth Audit. Either party may cancel a Growth Audit booking prior to the discovery call, subject to the refund conditions in Section 6. Once the discovery call has occurred or written work has commenced, the engagement is considered underway and fees are non-refundable.

Retainer engagements. Either party may terminate a retainer engagement by providing at least 30 days' written notice to the other party, unless the applicable Service Agreement specifies a different notice period. Termination does not affect any accrued rights or obligations of either party, including payment obligations for services already delivered.

Termination for cause. Either party may terminate an engagement immediately upon written notice if the other party:

• Materially breaches these Terms or the applicable Service Agreement and fails to remedy that breach within 14 days of receiving written notice to do so
• Becomes insolvent, enters administration, liquidation or receivership, or makes a general assignment for the benefit of creditors

Upon termination, we will deliver any completed work product up to the date of termination (subject to receipt of all outstanding payments), and each party will return or destroy the other's confidential information on request.

11Governing law and disputes

These Terms and any dispute or claim arising out of or in connection with them (including non-contractual disputes) are governed by the laws of the State of Western Australia, Australia.

The parties submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Western Australia (and any courts competent to hear appeals from those courts) for the resolution of any disputes.

Before commencing formal legal proceedings, both parties agree to attempt in good faith to resolve any dispute through direct negotiation. If the dispute cannot be resolved within 20 business days of one party notifying the other in writing of the dispute, either party may pursue formal legal proceedings.

12Changes to these terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. When we do, we will update the "Last updated" date at the top of this page. We encourage you to review these Terms periodically.

Changes to these Terms do not affect engagements already governed by a signed Service Agreement or Statement of Work — those continue to be governed by the Terms in effect at the time of signing, unless both parties agree otherwise in writing.

Your continued use of our website or engagement of our services after changes are posted constitutes your acceptance of the updated Terms.

13Contact us

For any questions about these Terms, please contact us: