Post your hearts out people! Still adding stores (obviously) but feedback is welcome and I need some UK/Europe shops! Also feedback on proxies.
PS. for some reason the tags for 'hide' aren't working right, please ignore it until I find out what's going on.
For every figure release, there is usually at least 10 places to order it, though some stores are more desired to order from than others. This is a list of stores to order from, and some general info as well as feedback from members about the level of service each store offers.
Of course, since this is based on community experiences, please feel free to post any experiences that you have, or suggest that a store be added to the list. This will be a constant work in progress.
I will be constantly updating this, so if it looks sparse, it will be improved.
This Thread will be separated into several sections (click on one to jump):
**Stores in Japan/Asia
Types of Shipping and What They Mean
–--Stores in Asia----
<<adding soon:="" ibuyxyz="" (just="" ordered="" from="" them,="" so="" i'll="" write="" one="" once="" my="" order="" arrives),="" <a="" href="http://www.tokyo-hunter.com/" target="_blank">http://www.tokyo-hunter.com/, http://mioboutique.blogspot.com/ (just ordered from them, so I'll write one once my order arrives)>>
Aikoudou http://aikoudo.com/
Located in Japan, Aikoudou carries a good amount of prize items as well as the usual fare.
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I really have no idea how this store works, as I've never ordered from them before. I appreciate some feedback from people on this! I never ordered from them because their shipping prices were outrageous for what I was having shipped, so I just chose not to deal with them. I think Cyber-Robin had problems with his DX Snap Girls Vivi/Nami as well. [/hide]
AmiAmi http://www.amiami.jp/shop/?set=english
Located in Tokyo, this shop is a favorite among forum members. Amiami offers a very wide selection of figures, and offers pre-orders at a higher discount than most places (15-30% off). However, since they are popular, obtaining preorders can sometimes be a rat race.
More info:
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An important thing to note about Amiami is that if an item says 1 per customer, they MEAN IT. If there is an account under the same IP address as another with the same item ordered, one order will be canceled. This is a definite drawback if you live with someone who wants a POP preorder. Amiami is very strict on their policy. Occasionally someone will get away with it, but for high in demand items you usually see cancellations.
Ordering & Shipping: Shipping is fair at Amiami and they offer the usual EMS/SAL/REG. Amiami will combine orders for you to be shipped at the same time if the orders are released in the same month. With Amiami you will usually receive and order confirmation shortly after you order, and, if available for shipping, the item will ship promptly within 1-2 days after payment is made. They invoice you, and you have 1 week to pay. They only accept PayPal from international customers as a payment method.
Account Management: There is no way to manage your items with your Amiami account. The best you can do is email them and ask for a list of all of your current preorders.
Cancellations: Amiami does not allow order cancellations, but if you’re sparse about it you can usually cancel an order here or there if you ask nicely and give a good reason.
Amiami’s preorders usually go up just after Hobby Search, but before Otacute, Big in Japan, and HLJ.
Defective/Damaged merchandise: Unsure, one user has had Amiami pay return shipping on a damaged item (damaged in shipping). Amiami’s policy is to take pictures of the item and contact them.
NOTE: When buying for others, you now can NOT change the shipping address for orders!!
STOCK NOTE: Amiami does not usually carry Banpresto prize items like Grandline Men, but they carry Styling/keychains and the like. Sometimes they get in random prize items, but don't count on it.
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Anime-Export http://www.anime-export.com/
Not sure where they're located, but a good shop in Japan. They have fair prices and discount POPs (got Nami/Marco for 18% off) when released (though with Rayleigh he had a discount for about 5 minutes then they took it away).
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Ordering & Shipping: Very easy to order, though payment with A-E is needed within 48 hours or they will cancel your order. I personally find it kind of nice to pay for things right away as it gets it out of the way, but some people don't like it. Their shipping is fair (1990Y to ship Nami & Marco SAL) though I feel like it could have been just a touch less than what it was. When you order you pay right away, then they send you an email when your item comes into stock. You can then go to your page and separate your order (if some are in stock and others aren't) and request shipping, or, alternately, you can wait until all items are in stock and they will automatically send you a shipping invoice/send you a link to pay for shipping.
One APF member recently complained that one of his orders disappeared, but I guess the problem was resolved. Another member says that sometimes that happens when an item is removed from the website if all the stock is sold out. No one has mentioned A-E not being able to fill an order that was placed.
Account Management: You can uncombine orders at any time or cancel items via you orders page.
Cancellations: If you do not pay within 48 hours your order is automatically canceled. If you cancel after you have paid there is a 20% fee.
NOTE: A-E just canceled a fair amount of Perona POPs (200 I think) due to having their stock allocations cut. Please take this into consideration when ordering POPs.
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Angolz http://www.angolz.com/store/
Angolz is a Hong Kong located online retail shop that sells prize items as well as POPs. A good place to go if you're looking for keychains or prize items. They usually have relatively cheap prices on prize items but not quite as low as Play-Asia.
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Ordering & Shipping: Easy to order, you pay instantly. I've never pre-ordered anything there so I can't say as to when they charge for that. They ship registed, SAL, or express though most of the time shipping is always about $15-$17 for me. They ship very promptly, and they actually pay attention to your order. For example, one member ordered multiple items for other forum members and Angolz e-mailed them just to make sure they didn't order multiples by mistake. I usually always use the cheapest shipping method and everything has arrived rather quickly. There is some question as to whether they sell bootlegs or not (as apparently Angolz is made up of a lot of different sellers) but there is no account of anyone on APF receiving a bootleg product from Angolz.
Account Management: You can log into your account and see information about your orders at any time. It is well organized and easy to understand.
Cancellations: You can cancel an item before it is shipped.
Defective/Damaged items: Contact within 7 days for a refund/replacement
NOTE: The first stock of POPs they get in is the Japanese release, the next wave are the HK version. (frozenkuku)
They also tend to stock later than the other stores, so if you missed things at Play Asia, HLJ and the like you can shoot for Angolz.
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Big in Japan http://www.biginjap.com/
Located in Tokyo, this store seemed to become an APF favorite practically overnight. The site does looks a bit questionable, but I assure you, they're a very good store. Great place to go to if you're looking for something limited that's only available through the Jump store or is a festival/event item. BiJ carried Ace 1.5, Bikini POPs, Wedding Hancock, Aokiji's coat, etc. Their pricing is often also very low on certain items, though it tends to be a crapshoot (ie Brotherhood set for 2700Y/DX marines for 1200Y, but Aokiji's coat was 3300Y while MioBoutique was selling it for 2900Y. Not usually the most expensive place if their prices lean that way on an item, but more middle-of-the-pack.
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Ordering & Shipping: Easy to order from, you can change the currency on the side. They let you know shipping ahead of time which is nice, and a forum member even said that when it turned out they overcharged him, they gave him back the difference. Their search options aren't the best, I type in 'One Piece' and get no results, though 'Aokiji' gives me 5 results, go figure. They ship promptly, but not super lightning fast. They will invoice you when an item comes in and you pay through paypal. You must pay within 7 days or your order is canceled and you are blacklisted. A perk is that, if you ask, they will lower the declared value of a parcel.
Account Management: You can log in and view your orders at any time.
Cancellations: Not sure about this, I only canceled one item with them, I just asked nicely and it was OK. However, there was something wrong with the item/description so they offered for anyone to cancel if they wanted to.
NOTE: Due to not getting the proper stock allocations from Banpresto, BiJ is no longer taking pre-orders for certain prize items and will only offer them if/when they come into stock if they are able to obtain them.
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Hobby Link Japan http://www.hlj.com/
<<hlj is="" occasionally="" currently="" experiencing="" delays="" in="" shipping="" due="" to="" the="" tsunami="">></hlj>
HLJ is a store located in Tochigi Japan that carries a large selection of figures and collectibles. They don’t discount as much as other stores (5-10%) and are less reliable as well. Usually HLJ is the last to sell out of any one item.
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Ordering & Shipping: Confusion ensues. HLJ has a very confusing ordering system that is usually best left to the ‘automatic payments’ option. Unlike many (almost every) other store, when you order from HLJ it is not guaranteed. It is confirmed and goes into your ‘orders’ section of your account page. On that page, your shown the item’s status (Order Stop, Low Stock, Backorder, Preorder, etc) and are given the option to ‘ship available items now.’ If you order an in-stock item, they will ship it after a day or two without requesting shipping. HOWEVER, if you order a pre-order item and DO NOT HAVE A BILLING AGREEMENT they will sell your item out from underneath you unless you pay right away. This is extremely annoying as you have no idea the exact second an item comes into stock, and when you make a pre-order, one assumes that the item is pre-ordered for you and guaranteed. Not so with HLJ. If you have an automatic payments/automatic billing account set up with them through PayPal, then it is a bit easier. They should ship your item automatically when it comes into stock, and charge you for it. This isn’t always the case, either, as HLJ is notorious for taking too many pre-orders for prize items and not being able to fill them when the items arrive. On the forum, we call this being HLJ’d. In their defense, there are problems with companies in Japan obtaining Banpresto prize items, and on occasion HLJ tends to get the item in a few weeks/months later, so if you find that item elsewhere make sure you cancel or you might get a surprise in your mailbox. HLJ does offer some of the best shipping rates, and most of the time can combine orders and ship SAL for you, which is a very nice perk. Doesn’t make up for the pesky ordering system, but it’s still nice.
Account Management: With HLJ, you are able to log in and view/cancel your orders at any time on your account page.
Cancellations: This is the major benefit to ordering with them. If you’re unsure of a figure purchase, pre-order it on HLJ and sleep on it with the knowledge that you can cancel at any time.
Defective/Damaged merchandise: Contact HLJ, no feedback from members yet.
NOTE: HLJ makes it very hard to switch your order to ship to someone else. If you plan to order for someone else, you need to change your address in your shipping information. However, if you have multiple items on order and are not sure exactly when something will ship, it can be hazardous as you don't want any item other than the one you want to give being sent elsewhere.
STOCK NOTE: HLJ carries Banpresto prize items but they're not always sure of their stock counts. They carry most other things as well (POPs, styling, etc). Sometimes they stock WCFs but are not as reliable with offering them as other stores are that have been doing it every month.
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Hobby Search http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/
Located in Tokyo, Hobby Search is a reliable source for figures in Japan. They offer a wide selection of figures with fair discounts (around 10-20%, but usually lower). They also offer a points system where you earn points for the figures you buy, and you can redeem the points later (1 point = 1 yen).
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Ordering & Shipping: Hobby Search offers the usual EMS/SAL/REG though they seem to need to ship some items EMS that other stores will ship SAL. Also, they tend to charge a bit more for shipping as well. With Hobby Search you will get an order confirmation shortly after your order, and when ready to ship you will be invoiced. For payments they accept PayPal (and something called AlertPay which I have no idea). Hobby Search will allow you to combine items for shipping if they are released in the same month.
Account Management: With Hobby Search you can manage your account online and see your orders at any time.
Cancellations: Hobby Search does allow cancellations of items up to ONE WEEK after preorders for an item open (this is not affected by when the order is placed). I believe if you ask nicely and send a request they will cancel the occasional item for you as well. All sales are final, there are no returns.
Defective/Damaged merchandise: They have a form you fill out.
STOCK NOTE: Does not carry prize items, but a good go-to for any larger figure line or POPs.
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Mandarake http://www.mandarake.co.jp/
Mandarake is a secondhand goods shop with 11 locations: Sapporo, Nakano, Shibuya, Akihabara, Ikebukuro, Utsunomiya, Nagoya, Umeda, Osaka, Fukuoka, and Kokura. They carry any range of products and are a good place to find rare and out-of-production items. They have an auction, English webpage, and Japanese webpage. I’ve found that more items turn up when I do my search in Japanese on the Japanese page, but it may just take time updating some items into English. If you need help finding something's Japanese name, H-E-A-R-T can help on IRC. Sometimes since there are items available on the Japanese site that are not on the English page, you can add them to your cart on the Japanese site and move over to the English site. If it won't let you with that item, you will have to e-mail Mandarake and ask them to make it available on the English page.
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Ordering & Shipping: When ordering from Mandarake, you need to keep in mind most (if not all) the stores post items on the website. So when you shop there, you could have 5 items in your cart, all shipping from different locations. If it’s a different location, it’s shipped separately and you are charged as such. Mandarake accepts paypal payments but only for EMS purchases (though I’ve heard they make exceptions). If you want something shipped SAL, you make your order, they send you a confirmation, then, if the item is in stock, they invoice you. With Mandarake you also have the option of canceling your whole order if 1 item is out of stock (so, say you order 3 WCFs (zoro, luffy, perona) but if they don’t have perona in stock you don’t want any of them, then you can click a button that will void your order if perona’s not available. Mandarake charges a 500Y handling fee for orders under 5000Y.
Account Management: None. This is really not a pre-order kind of place XD
Cancellations: Mandarake does allow you to cancel an order as far as I know, but do NOT order and then not pay. They can and will ban you from purchasing with them.
STOCK NOTE: Mandarake carries anything and everything. Any odds or ends, they are one of your best shots at finding it.
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Otacute http://www.otacute.com/
Otacute is a store located in Yokohama, Japan. They are a dependable, go-to store for many on APF, and are known to have the lowest shipping rates around. However, lately their prices have not been as competitive as they have been in the past.
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Ordering & Shipping: Very easy to order on Otacute, just add items to your cart and check out. If you order lots of items at once and they are pre-order, Otacute will ship when all items become available. So if you want items as they come out, make separate orders as Otacute will not separate orders (though I do believe they can combine them). For shipping, I've had great luck with Otacute, and I personally think they have magical Mary Poppins powers with SAL. They recently shipped me 3 POPs for $20USD using SAL (and in the package before that, they fit the Will of D set, Admirals DX set, and 2 Nendoroid rooms). Hobby Search would NOT have done that. Otacute will run out of pre-order items, but will take back-orders. I have heard mixed reviews about this, as many times they can't get the items back in. If you are waiting over a week, Otacute will give you the option to cancel your order. However, in the scrambling-to-get-your-figure-ASAP world, a week can be the difference between every store having stock and every store selling out. If you're unsure, look elsewhere.
Account Management: Easy to manage your account any time, just sign in and go to 'my account.' You can view all of your items that you have on order with them by date/order # and view your previous orders.
Cancellations: Not accepted at Otacute, but some members say that you can just not pay when invoiced and your order will eventually be cancelled. I have heard lots of different stories, however. Ones where the order wasn't cancelled even after a month, and also ones where a person requested an order to be cancelled and Otacute was terse about it. I personally requested an order cancelled very nicely and got a very kind, understanding email back. Kind of like, "Sure, no problem! Thank you!" I'm not sure where the disparity comes from, perhaps different workers at Otacute answering emails, or maybe I just asked nicely so they were nice in return. In short, don't order from them unless you're 99% sure you want the item.
Defective/Damaged merchandise: not sure yet
NOTE: It is very easy to have someone take one of your orders at Otacute. When you're invoiced, just have the other person sign in, change the address for that order, and pay.
STOCK NOTE: Otacute carries prize items, but tends to get them in a bit later than other places. Other than that they carry the usual OP fare.
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Play-Asia http://www.play-asia.com/
Play-Asia is a store located in Hong Kong and has a wide array of products ranging from keychains, MBH singles, prize items and the like to larger figures like DPCF and POPs.
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Ordering & Shipping: To be honest, Play-Asia can be quite irritating to order from on occasion. I've heard of people getting multiple items, or extra items they didn't order in their packages. Also I have ordered full sets of WCFs only to have them ship half the set and refund my money for the others. However, I did recently order a set of WCF 0 and they only shipped 5, the other 3 on back-order. They said they would stock more and I was skeptical, but they just shipped the other 3 (about a month later?) so I suppose they can be dependable for that. Though, that is the nature of the figure market so they can't be blamed too harshly. Their prices range from fair to downright dirt cheap, though they have been raising the prices on their restocks as of late (WCF vol 0, brotherhood).
They ship lightning fast, and I mean within the day you order. If you need to cancel, do it immediately as your items will be shipping to you within a few hours. I am always surprised at how fast they reach me in the states, I am on the East Coast and sometimes I will get packages faster than my friends on the West Coast (will arrive within 3-5 days of ordering).
I have some store credit there that I am very confused on how to use, that is a drawback as well.
Account Management: Surprisingly, very easy! You have an account page where you can ask questions about orders and see the status at any time.
Cancellations: I believe you can cancel an order before it ships, or any preorder that you have made. I forget if you need to pay for a preorder at that instant, but I believe you do. I seem to remember paying for SDX ace as soon as I ordered him (if I'm wrong on this PM me so I can change it). P-A is quick to refund, so that's not something you have to worry about.
Defective Merchandise: I got a defective Ace keychain and sent them a picture, they sent a replacement a day later. Nice! [/hide]</adding>