So as we start into the new year, I’m excited to start working towards my new collection goal of filling in my Japanese Pikachu promo binder. As I’ve been researching and making a list, I’m quickly seeing prices rise on certain cards I have my sights on so I was wondering if prices are similar in Japan, or if I’ll save any money by learning to use one of the middleman services (zenmarket, buyee, etc.), or if buying on Ebay is still my best bet. And if so, any recommendations on site to use to do it the most cost effectively? (regarding storage/packing and shipping fees)
It depends on the card. People like to think that things in Japan are always cheaper but that’s not necessarily the case. If you’re buying something like single copies of modern promos it’s usually going to be cheaper just to buy them on eBay. Sure, Kanazawa’s Pikachu might be double the price on eBay than it is on Yahoo, but once you factor in middleman fees, domestic Japanese shipping, and international shipping, you’ll end up actually paying more for the one you bought on Yahoo. If you’re buying more expensive cards (in the several hundred dollar range) that might be when it would become financially viable to buy from Yahoo/Mercari/etc than the Western market.
Buying from these Japanese marketplaces usually only ends up being cheaper if you’re buying a lot of stuff and can combine the international shipping costs. So buying 20 Kanazawa’s Pikachus would definitely be cheaper on Yahoo than eBay.
However, where Japanese marketplaces really shine is in simple availability of cards. So much stuff comes up there that you just won’t see on eBay or in the West. You may not be getting a great deal on it, but simply the possibility to purchase the card can be huge. I’m sure there are a lot of rare Japanese Pikachus that just don’t come up on eBay that often but would be more common in Japan.
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Double post because I forgot to answer the second part…I only have experience with Zenmarket and Buyee so that’s what I can speak to.
Buyee: 500 yen flat fee per item, no need to pre-deposit funds, access to Mercari, no ability to purchase via link, package consolidation costs 1000 yen, shipping options are limited and expensive
Zenmarket: 300 yen flat fee per item, must pre-deposit funds (3.5% fee via paypal, can get this down by using bank transfer), able to add links to purchase items, free package consolidation, more available shipping options.
Both have their pros and cons. I found Buyee easier to use when I was starting out buying from Japan, but now I use both services here and there.
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Yeah when there is a new modern promo I do just grab it off ebay, and I’ve been pretty current with that for several years so now ill be working on XY-P promos and earlier. I don’t have the budget to go after the super-rare stuff so any card I want right know probably is available on ebay at any given time.
A lot on my list left do get into the $1-200+ range especially with the growth many of them had this year (poncho full arts for example).
I don’t mind letting them sit and consolidate in a warehouse to combine and save on shipping cost; my main question is if I would be getting any better deals going after that sort of more expensive promo, or if the prices are pretty normalized between eBay and Japanese online marketplaces. If the savings after fees and shipping will be net zero or close to, it won’t be worth it because availability isn’t the problem for me at least at the moment.
So far my experience constitutes of importing one rare Pikachu plush through zenmarket and while the process of getting it to me wasn’t bad, I had trouble figuring out how to actually search those sites to find the items to buy.
It is going to vary with the card, you certainly could be getting deals but buying from Japan isn’t exactly a secret within the Pokemon collecting community so don’t expect anything crazy. My best advice here would be to have a card in mind and do the research before you make a purchasing decision. Just remember that the purchase price on an auction site will not end up being the final price you pay.