MintMerch Specification

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MintMerch

Drop the Merch, Own the Moment.

Overview

MintMerch is an open-source, modular merchandise platform that connects digital collectibles, community participation, and physical and digital products. The platform enables creators, brands, organizations, and online communities to establish customizable storefronts, launch exclusive merchandise drops, and provide token-gated purchasing opportunities and rewards through compressed non-fungible tokens (cNFTs).

MintMerch empowers communities to participate in merchandise design, vote on limited-edition releases, access exclusive products, and verify product authenticity. Its modular architecture provides essential commerce and cNFT functionality through core modules while supporting optional plugins for expanded integrations, automation, and customization.

The platform prioritizes transparency, security, privacy, accessibility, interoperability, creator autonomy, user ownership, and freedom from unnecessary vendor lock-in.

Core Modules

Merchandise Storefront Module

Provide customizable storefronts for creators, brands, organizations, and communities.
Support physical merchandise, digital products, collectibles, and limited-edition releases.
Allow storefront operators to customize branding, layouts, product presentations, and navigation.
Support product categories, collections, descriptions, images, variants, and pricing.
Provide responsive storefront experiences across desktop and mobile devices.
Support multiple storefronts with independent configurations.
Enable public product listings and token-gated merchandise catalogs.
Allow operators to control product visibility, availability, and purchasing requirements.
Provide product discovery and search capabilities.
Support configurable storefront policies, including shipping, returns, and refunds.
Allow operators to export storefront and catalog data for portability.

Product Catalog and Inventory Module

Create, update, organize, and archive product listings.
Manage inventory quantities, product variants, sizes, colors, and other attributes.
Support limited production runs, numbered editions, and exclusive collections.
Provide low-stock notifications and configurable inventory thresholds.
Prevent overselling through inventory validation and reservation controls.
Support preorders, made-to-order merchandise, and scheduled availability.
Track product availability across storefronts and campaigns.
Maintain inventory histories and administrative records.
Support product bundles, promotional collections, and merchandise packages.
Provide configurable inventory allocation for exclusive releases.
Support inventory synchronization through documented integration interfaces.

cNFT Membership and Access Module

Integrate with supported blockchain networks and compressed non-fungible token standards.
Verify cNFT ownership through compatible wallets and blockchain data providers.
Associate eligible cNFT collections with merchandise access, membership benefits, and rewards.
Enable token-gated access to exclusive products, presales, and limited-edition releases.
Configure eligibility requirements by product, campaign, collection, or membership tier.
Support multiple cNFT collections and independent access policies.
Validate eligibility before allowing restricted purchases or redemptions.
Support configurable expiration periods and campaign deadlines where applicable.
Provide clear explanations of the benefits associated with qualifying tokens.
Allow storefront operators to offer alternative eligibility methods when appropriate.
Avoid requiring users to disclose private keys or seed phrases.
Distinguish token ownership from ownership of merchandise, trademarks, intellectual property, or other rights.
Clearly communicate network requirements, transaction fees, and token compatibility limitations.

Merchandise Drop and Campaign Module

Create and manage scheduled merchandise drops.
Configure exclusive release windows for eligible cNFT holders.
Support public release windows following exclusive-access periods.
Set purchase limits, release quantities, eligibility rules, and campaign deadlines.
Display upcoming releases, countdowns, and availability information.
Support presales, waitlists, reservation requests, and limited-time offers.
Provide configurable allocation policies for high-demand merchandise.
Prevent duplicate redemptions and enforce campaign purchasing restrictions.
Publish campaign rules and eligibility requirements before participation.
Provide announcements and notifications for upcoming releases.
Maintain campaign histories and relevant allocation records.
Support optional integrations for raffles, queues, and randomized allocations.

Community Design and Voting Module

Allow community members to participate in merchandise design decisions.
Support voting on product concepts, colors, artwork, slogans, collections, and limited-edition releases.
Enable creators to submit proposals for community review.
Configure voting periods, eligibility requirements, and participation limits.
Support cNFT-based voting eligibility.
Provide transparent vote-counting rules and published results.
Support configurable voting models, including simple majority and weighted voting.
Disclose when voting power depends on token holdings or membership tiers.
Maintain verifiable records of voting outcomes.
Enable proposal discussions, feedback, and community suggestions.
Provide moderation controls for submissions and discussions.
Distinguish advisory polls from binding governance decisions.
Support optional on-chain voting integrations.
Provide safeguards against duplicate voting and common forms of manipulation.

Tiered Rewards and Benefits Module

Allow creators to configure membership tiers and merchandise rewards.
Associate supported cNFT collections with specific benefits.
Offer early access, exclusive products, discounts, bundles, and special editions.
Support one-time rewards, recurring benefits, and limited redemption campaigns.
Configure reward eligibility, availability, transferability, and expiration.
Display available benefits to eligible users.
Validate eligibility before issuing or redeeming rewards.
Prevent duplicate redemption of single-use benefits.
Maintain reward issuance and redemption histories.
Allow reward programs to be configured independently for different communities.
Provide transparent rules for changes to existing reward programs.
Support loyalty and achievement extensions through optional plugins.

Product Authenticity and Provenance Module

Associate eligible merchandise with unique product identifiers or batch identifiers.
Maintain digital records containing relevant product, production, and fulfillment information.
Support QR codes and other scannable identifiers for product verification.
Record authorized manufacturing, certification, packaging, and shipping events.
Allow authorized suppliers and fulfillment partners to submit provenance updates.
Support tamper-evident records and optional blockchain anchoring.
Provide public verification pages for eligible products.
Display supporting documentation for materials, manufacturing methods, and sustainability claims.
Distinguish independently verified information from supplier-provided claims.
Support corrections, disputes, and updates to inaccurate records.
Provide exportable provenance information for independent review.
Avoid representing a digital record as proof of physical authenticity unless the underlying verification process supports that claim.

Commerce and Checkout Module

Provide shopping carts, checkout workflows, and order confirmations.
Support guest checkout and optional customer accounts.
Integrate with compatible payment providers through replaceable adapters.
Support conventional payment methods through configured providers.
Allow optional cryptocurrency payment integrations.
Calculate product totals, discounts, shipping charges, and applicable taxes.
Validate cNFT eligibility before completing restricted purchases.
Support promotional codes, eligible holder discounts, and campaign-specific pricing.
Generate order summaries and transaction receipts.
Prevent duplicate order submissions and validate checkout requests.
Support payment status verification and order reconciliation.
Protect payment information by minimizing direct handling of sensitive payment credentials.
Support cancellation, refund, and payment dispute workflows where applicable.
Keep payment processing independent of token eligibility and storefront presentation.

Order Management and Fulfillment Module

Track orders from placement through fulfillment and delivery.
Provide order status updates and customer notifications.
Manage shipping addresses, delivery preferences, and tracking references.
Support manual fulfillment and integrated fulfillment workflows.
Accommodate print-on-demand merchandise and made-to-order products.
Track cancellations, returns, exchanges, and refunds.
Support multiple fulfillment locations and split shipments where available.
Configure fulfillment rules by product, destination, and provider.
Maintain order histories and administrative audit records.
Provide secure access to customer order information.
Support fulfillment reporting and data exports.
Allow fulfillment integrations to be replaced without redesigning core order management.

Creator and Store Management Module

Provide administrative dashboards for creators and storefront operators.
Manage products, inventory, campaigns, orders, rewards, and community proposals.
Configure storefront branding, policies, and purchasing requirements.
Support multiple administrators with configurable roles and permissions.
Provide sales, inventory, campaign, and fulfillment reports.
Maintain histories of important administrative actions.
Configure notifications and operational preferences.
Provide tools for handling customer inquiries and order disputes.
Support storefront data export, backup, and migration.
Allow operators to enable or disable optional integrations independently.
Provide understandable administrative controls for nontechnical users.
Clearly distinguish platform-wide responsibilities from individual storefront management.

User Identity and Wallet Integration Module

Support compatible wallet connections for cNFT verification.
Provide wallet-based authentication where supported.
Separate token ownership verification from unrelated identity requirements.
Explain wallet connection requests and transaction signing requirements.
Never request private keys or wallet seed phrases.
Allow users to disconnect wallets and manage linked identities.
Support multiple wallets where appropriate.
Provide secure session management and configurable account protections.
Explain how token transfers may affect eligibility for merchandise and benefits.
Support alternative account access methods where appropriate.
Minimize personal information collection.
Provide clear handling for unsupported networks and incompatible tokens.

Marketplace Interoperability Module

Use documented interfaces and established token standards wherever feasible.
Support integrations with compatible wallets, marketplaces, and blockchain indexers.
Provide portable product, campaign, and eligibility metadata.
Enable independent verification of cNFT-based eligibility where supported.
Support interoperable redemption records when compatible systems permit them.
Provide documented interfaces for external commerce applications.
Allow third-party developers to build compatible storefronts and integrations.
Avoid unnecessary dependence on a single blockchain infrastructure provider.
Support migration between compatible services.
Document network-specific restrictions and interoperability limitations.
Clearly distinguish transferable tokens from merchant-specific benefits and redemption rights.
Avoid implying universal redemption across platforms unless the relevant agreements and integrations support it.

Privacy and Data Protection Module

Minimize personal data collection and retention.
Separate public blockchain information from private customer and order records.
Protect customer profiles, shipping information, and purchase histories.
Provide configurable retention policies for supported data categories.
Support secure administrative access and permission management.
Publish clear privacy disclosures for operators and customers.
Support applicable data access, correction, export, and deletion workflows.
Avoid storing sensitive personal information directly on public blockchains.
Protect data in transit and at rest through appropriate security controls.
Provide configurable controls for analytics, marketing communications, and optional tracking.
Explain the privacy implications of wallet connections and public blockchain transactions.
Document data processing responsibilities and third-party integrations.

Security and Audit Module

Apply role-based access control to administrative and operational functions.
Validate authorization for sensitive actions and restricted operations.
Enforce purchase eligibility and reward redemption rules through authoritative validation.
Maintain audit records for important administrative and transactional events.
Support rate limiting, input validation, and abuse prevention.
Protect integrations through scoped credentials and secure secret management.
Provide secure deployment and configuration guidance.
Support security testing of core components and smart contracts.
Document vulnerability reporting and responsible disclosure procedures.
Monitor dependencies and provide a process for security updates.
Support backup, restoration, and recovery procedures.
Provide emergency procedures for compromised integrations and service disruptions.
Allow affected integrations to be suspended without unnecessarily disabling unrelated functionality.
Clearly identify whether components have undergone independent security review.

Analytics and Reporting Module

Report merchandise sales, inventory levels, and fulfillment performance.
Track campaign participation and reward redemption.
Provide product popularity and storefront performance summaries.
Support privacy-respecting engagement and conversion metrics.
Allow reporting by configurable date ranges and filters.
Provide downloadable reports in common data formats.
Distinguish verified on-chain activity from platform-generated estimates.
Document the methodology behind reported metrics.
Avoid treating token ownership as proof of identity or engagement.
Support optional external analytics integrations.
Allow operators to disable nonessential tracking.
Provide configurable community-facing reports for campaign and voting results.

Administration and Governance Module

Provide configurable platform and storefront administration.
Define roles for creators, moderators, fulfillment staff, and administrators.
Support community proposals and configurable voting procedures.
Publish merchandise policies, reward rules, and campaign conditions.
Maintain version histories for important configuration changes.
Provide administrative review workflows for reported products and disputed records.
Support community consultation for significant policy changes.
Allow governance procedures to vary by deployment.
Document the authority held by platform operators and storefront owners.
Provide reporting and review mechanisms for misuse.
Distinguish community polls from legally binding decisions.
Keep platform security responsibilities separate from individual storefront policies.

API and Integration Module

Provide documented interfaces for products, inventory, orders, campaigns, and rewards.
Support integration with external storefronts and community applications.
Apply authentication, authorization, and rate limits to API access.
Provide configurable event notifications and webhooks.
Support adapters for blockchain networks, wallets, payment providers, and fulfillment services.
Maintain versioned interfaces and compatibility documentation.
Validate incoming requests and provide documented error responses.
Provide test environments for integration developers.
Allow optional integrations to be enabled or disabled independently.
Provide integration health indicators and diagnostic information.
Minimize mandatory external dependencies for essential platform functions.

Accessibility and Internationalization Module

Support accessible storefront navigation and checkout workflows.
Provide keyboard navigation and screen-reader-compatible interfaces.
Include accessible product descriptions and alternative text for images.
Support configurable display languages and localized content.
Provide regional currency formatting and timezone-aware campaign schedules.
Support configurable shipping regions and product availability rules.
Allow translation of product listings, storefront policies, and campaign information.
Provide accessible error messages and transaction status updates.
Clearly explain token requirements and redemption restrictions.
Avoid making wallet familiarity a prerequisite for viewing publicly available information.

Documentation and Developer Experience Module

Provide installation, configuration, and deployment documentation.
Document administrative workflows and storefront management.
Publish API specifications and integration guides.
Provide developer documentation for creating compatible plugins.
Document supported cNFT standards and network-specific limitations.
Maintain contribution guidelines and project governance documentation.
Publish security reporting instructions.
Document backup, recovery, and data migration procedures.
Provide user-facing guidance for creators, customers, and community members.
Include testing and compatibility guidance for core functionality and extensions.
Document project licensing, attribution requirements, and contribution expectations.
Support transparent contribution review and maintenance processes.

Optional Plugin Modules

Print-on-Demand Integration Plugin

Connect with compatible print-on-demand providers.
Synchronize supported product catalogs, variants, and availability.
Submit eligible orders for production.
Retrieve production and shipping status.
Apply provider-specific fulfillment rules.
Allow providers to be replaced without changing core commerce workflows.

Advanced Loyalty Plugin

Provide loyalty points, achievements, badges, and repeat-purchase rewards.
Configure reward thresholds and redemption rules.
Combine loyalty benefits with cNFT-based eligibility.
Track reward histories and expiration.
Support multiple loyalty programs for different communities.

Referral and Affiliate Plugin

Generate referral codes and trackable campaign links.
Attribute eligible purchases to configured referral sources.
Support commission calculations and performance reports.
Provide fraud prevention and referral policy controls.
Integrate with supported payout systems where appropriate.

Community Governance Plugin

Provide advanced community proposal and voting workflows.
Support compatible on-chain and off-chain voting systems.
Display proposal histories, voting rules, and results.
Support delegation and alternative voting models where configured.
Provide transparent eligibility and participation records.
Document limitations and manipulation risks associated with voting mechanisms.

Digital Collectibles Plugin

Support compatible digital collectible releases.
Associate digital collectibles with selected merchandise campaigns.
Provide metadata management and content storage integrations.
Support configurable digital reward redemption.
Clearly disclose token rights, transferability, and external dependencies.

Sustainability and Ethical Sourcing Plugin

Record supplier-provided sustainability information.
Display available certifications and supporting documentation.
Track disclosed production locations and materials.
Provide configurable supplier verification workflows.
Distinguish verified certifications from unverified claims.
Offer optional environmental impact reporting.

Advanced Provenance Plugin

Integrate with external product authentication services.
Support signed production and fulfillment attestations.
Anchor selected records to compatible blockchain networks.
Provide advanced batch-level and item-level traceability.
Support provenance dispute reporting and record corrections.

Advanced Analytics Plugin

Provide configurable campaign and sales dashboards.
Support advanced inventory and product performance analysis.
Integrate with compatible analytics services.
Enable privacy-respecting conversion reporting.
Provide customizable reports and scheduled exports.

Multi-Chain Integration Plugin

Support additional blockchain networks and compatible cNFT standards.
Verify token ownership on configured networks.
Allow operators to enable or disable supported networks.
Display network fees and compatibility requirements.
Provide clear handling of network outages and unsupported tokens.
Document the risks and limitations of cross-chain transfers and bridges.

Cryptocurrency Payments Plugin

Integrate with supported cryptocurrency payment providers.
Track transaction status and payment confirmations.
Configure transaction confirmation requirements.
Display applicable network fees and payment instructions.
Provide reconciliation and refund workflows where supported.
Keep cryptocurrency payment processing independent of core storefront functionality.

Shipping and Fulfillment Plugin

Integrate with compatible carriers and fulfillment providers.
Retrieve shipping rates and tracking updates.
Support fulfillment rules by region, product, and provider.
Provide configurable delivery notifications.
Allow manual fulfillment when external services are unavailable.

Marketing and Notifications Plugin

Send optional email notifications and campaign announcements.
Provide release reminders and configurable updates.
Integrate with compatible community platforms.
Support notification subscriptions and communication preferences.
Respect consent requirements and applicable marketing regulations.

Advanced Storefront Customization Plugin

Provide additional themes, layouts, and storefront components.
Support custom landing pages and promotional sections.
Enable configurable branding and campaign presentations.
Allow storefront operators to install compatible extensions.
Maintain compatibility with core accessibility and security requirements.

External Marketplace Integration Plugin

Connect with compatible third-party marketplaces.
Publish supported product and collectible listings where permitted.
Synchronize compatible metadata and listing availability.
Display external listing status when reliable integrations exist.
Clearly disclose third-party fees, restrictions, and dependencies.

Modular Architecture Requirements

Maintain clear boundaries between core modules and optional plugins.
Define documented interfaces for communication between modules.
Allow optional plugins to be installed, configured, upgraded, and disabled independently.
Prevent plugins from bypassing core authorization, privacy, security, and transaction validation controls.
Provide permission boundaries for third-party integrations.
Support versioned interfaces and documented compatibility requirements.
Allow external service providers to be replaced through modular adapters.
Support data export, migration, and backup without unnecessary provider dependencies.
Provide automated tests for core functions and plugin interfaces.
Document plugin capabilities, permissions, external dependencies, and data access requirements.
Ensure optional plugins do not become mandatory dependencies for unrelated core functionality.
Provide safe failure handling when an optional integration becomes unavailable.
Allow deployment operators to select features appropriate to their operational needs.

Specification Branding License (SBL)

Standard

Fully AGPL-3.0+ compliant system.
Copyleft enforced for network deployments.
Required attribution:
- Roxanne Ardary
- https://www.roxanneardary.com/

Optional

Specification Branding License (SBL)
- Attribution-free commercial deployment.
- Pricing based on scale, usage, and deployment scope.
- https://roxanneardary.com/mintmerch/

Licensing and Notice Requirements

MintMerch is released under the GNU Affero General Public License v3.0 or later (AGPL-3.0+).

By contributing to any Open Arsenal project, you agree that your contributions will also be released under this license.

Please note the following:

All contributions must comply with the AGPL-3.0+ terms.
Under Section 7 of the license, all redistributions, forks, and derivative works must preserve attribution to Roxanne Ardary and roxanneardary.com.
MintMerch specifications are free to use with attribution. A Specification Branding License can be negotiated upon request.
The project’s notice.md file tracks attribution requirements and contributor acknowledgments. Any update that adds new contributors or modifies attribution should also update notice.md.
When submitting a pull request, ensure that any new files maintain the attribution headers where applicable.
Network-deployed versions of this software must also remain fully AGPL-3.0+ compliant, including exposure of source code modifications when applicable under the license.

For full legal details, please refer to the AGPL-3.0+ license and the project’s notice.md file.

Notice – MintMerch

Attribution Requirement: Under Section 7 of the AGPL 3.0+ license, all redistributions, forks, and derivative works, including network-deployed versions of this project, must provide attribution to Roxanne Ardary and roxanneardary.com.

Contributors

This file tracks contributors and their specific contributions to the project.

Roxanne Ardary, roxanneardary.com – October 26, 2026
Created the repository for MintMerch. Developed the project concept for an open-source merchandise platform featuring cNFT-powered exclusive merchandise, community-driven designs, limited-edition product drops, customizable rewards, product authenticity verification, and modular commerce integrations.
[Add other contributors here] – [Date]
[Describe contribution in one sentence]

License – MintMerch

This repository is licensed under the GNU Affero General Public License v3.0 or later (AGPL-3.0+).

Key Points:

You are free to use, modify, and distribute the code.
All redistributions, forks, and derivative works or network-deployed versions must also be licensed under AGPL-3.0+ and provide attribution to Roxanne Ardary and roxanneardary.com as required under Section 7 of the license.
The software is provided “as is,” without warranty of any kind.

For the full license text, see GNU AGPL-3.0 License.