Guide to Japanese Secondhand Clothing Markets and Proxy Buying Services

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By: Joseph Gleasure [ Instagram ] and XEONIQ [ Instagram | Tumblr ]

Contents

1. Introduction
2. The Benefits of Importing Goods from Japan
3. The 3 Most Popular Proxy Buying Services
4. The Basics of Proxy Buying
5. Search Term Tips
6. Things to Consider

1. Introduction

Japan has some of the most eclectic and exciting secondhand clothing markets in the world.  The three main marketplaces are: Rakuten: an Amazon style site where consumers can purchase goods directly from individual stores; Yahoo! Auctions Japan: the equivalent of Ebay with a mix of auctions and direct purchasing options from both individual sellers and stores alike; and Mercari, a truly unique individual to individual marketplace most akin to Kijiji/Maarktplaats/Gumtree and so on. This short guide was put together after having numerous conversations with clothing enthusiasts online who expressed that they felt intimidated or confused with how to order products from Japan.

2. The Benefits of Importing Goods from Japan

There are an extraordinary selection of Japanese clothing brands, many with a technical focus, including rare and exclusive Japan-only items. A brand like North Face Purple Label for example has over 3600 items available for sale.

Generally, the prices are lower than Grailed, eBay or Depop. There has been a correction of the secondhand markets in recent years so the price disparity isn’t quite what it once was, however, there are plenty of brands where great deals can be found very easily in Japan. This is especially true of any Japanese brand. Many resellers on Grailed are simply purchasing from sites such as Yahoo! Japan Auctions (Y!JP) and Mercari using a proxy and then marking the items up significantly. You can bypass this by purchasing directly from the source.

A few recent examples of good deals with their sales price in yen are shown below.

3. The 3 Most Popular Proxy Buying Services

There are dozens of existing proxy services for any Western buyer to peruse. They all use more or less the same model but there are minor quirks that help differentiate them from one another. For the sake of this guide we’re only going to focus on the biggest 3:  Buyee, From Japan and Zenmarket.

There are minor differences in fees between the proxies but they’re more or less all comparable with ¥300 per item proxy fees and then an assortment of minor transaction costs, plus the final package’s international shipping fee from the proxy’s warehouse to your door. We have outlined some of the more significant service differences below.

Buyee is a straightforward proxy service that does not require a deposit. They’ll purchase on your behalf. The big benefit of Buyee over Zenmarket and From Japan is that they will purchase from Mercari for you, and the others will not. You may store items for up to 30 days free and 90 days total. Like Zenmarket and From Japan there are regular Rakuten sales and cash back promotions. The one drawback to Buyee however is that unlike many other proxy services Buyee will not change the declared value of the package. Which means for those of us in countries with stricter duties and taxes this can be a significant drawback as it is an added expense that you will incur once the package has reached your country.

Zenmarket is often recommended for its well-designed user interface and up-front fees. You pay proxy fees up front at a flat rate of 300 yen per item and the shipping fee later once a package of items you’ve won has been collated. Zenmaket also has a reward system which allows you to access up to ¥200,000 in credit for regular users. You have 45 days of free storage before an item starts incurring fees for sitting at their warehouse and they will allow you to adjust the declared value of items you’ve won and offer numerous shipping options. There are regular Rakuten sales and they have their own items they sell and promote, which are cheaper because of less transaction fees with third party sellers. The drawback to Zenmarket is there are a number of sellers and stores on Y!JP who refuse to deal with them. This can make it frustrating when trying to put together a larger package or when you’re hunting for deals and excluded from certain sellers’ auctions. Zenmarket does not deal with Mercari either. This is the service that XEONIQ uses.

Like Zenmarket, they have 45 days of storage and allow you to set the value of items on your shipping documents, so you avoid duties and taxes, and they have a reward system that is based on how much you spend and gives you a discount on shipping. They have occasional Rakuten sales varying from around 7-10% off purchases. We also have only ever had a single seller refuse to work with FromJapan in almost 8 years of using the service. The main downside to their service is they will not purchase from Mercari. Also, you do not pay any proxy fees up front as you do with Zenmarket. Instead these are all included with the shipping fee and called “Charge 2”. Charge 2 includes relevant domestic taxes, domestic shipping, proxy fees, and your final parcel’s shipping fee. Depending on what you’re buying these can add up and be quite significant.  This is the service that Joseph uses.

Summary of the Proxies

Proxy	Fee Schedule	Works with Mercari	Ability to Alter the Declared Amount of Parcels for Customs?	Provides up to ¥20,000 Credit for Regular Users
Buyee	Direct debit from PayPal each Auction win for all proxy, item and transaction fees; customs and shipping fees per parcel	Yes	No	No
Zenmarket	Pre-pay credit to pay item, proxy and all transaction fees per win; customs and shipping fees per parcel	No	Yes	Yes
From Japan	Pre-pay credit to pay item fees per win; transaction, proxy, customs and shipping fees per parcel	No	Yes	No

4. The Basic Steps of Proxy Buying

There are four basic steps to importing goods via one of the proxies listed above.

1. Creating an Account
   • Almost all proxy services require you to register an account first before purchasing any items.
2. Searching for Items
   • You can either navigate Y!JP auctions, Mercari, Rakuten, various Japanese retail website and so on, or you can search within the proxy service’s own portal.
     • Navigating Sites: Firstly, search on Y!JP/Mercari/Rakuten directly, using a mix of English and Japanese search terms to filter through the listings. The simplest way to parse the sites is by using a translation plugin or browser that has one such as Google Chrome. Once you’ve located an item you want to purchase, simply paste the item’s URL into the proxy service’s search bar and it will take you to a purchase screen.
     • Searching within the Proxy itself: Zenmarket and other sites have their own portals that automatically translate the Japanese shopping pages to your own language and also provide some limited translation for terms in the search bar itself, such as “jacket”.
3. Bid On/Purchase Items
   • Adding Funds
     To make a purchase or bid with From Japan or Zenmarket proxy services, you must add funds to your account first.  This is usually called a deposit and can either be done through the purchase page or independently through add deposit section of a proxy service’s website. You can add just enough to cover each transaction and top up, or you can add a large amount to use over time. Each time you deposit via credit card or PayPal it incurs a small fee, thus making less deposits is better. For Buyee, they will directly debit your PayPal account for each auction win.
   • “Prompt Decision” Purchases and Auctions on Y!JP
     There are two primary options for purchasing: the first is buy it now, often accompanied by a button saying “prompt decision” this means the proxy service will instantly process your purchase and the seller will ship it to the warehouse where it will be processed and later shipped to you. For auctions there are two options: The first option is sniper bidding, the service will place a last-minute bid on your behalf. Y!JP works differently than eBay in that each time a bid is made near the finishing time, it will extend the auction by 5 minutes. The second option is real-time bidding which as the name suggests is when a bid is placed immediately on the item in real time. For Rakuten shopping, everything is a direct purchase.
   • Mercari Purchases
     For Mercari there is a slightly different process, you can purchase items through a proxy service like you would for a prompt decision item or on Rakuten but, the item isn’t purchased until the buyer accepts the proxy services offer/request to buy. This can lead to delays in purchasing which means sometimes you miss out on an item. Usually this isn’t an issue but, it is a possibility and something to consider when purchasing.
4. Creating a Parcel and Shipping
   There are two steps to shipping packages from a proxy service:
   • Consolidation
     Once you’ve purchased items and they’ve arrived at the proxy service’s warehouse you instruct the service to combine multiple items into a single package. This is typically called “creating a new parcel”. Within a few days you will be notified that your items have been packed.
   • Instructing Shipment
     This is when you select your shipping service and pay your shipping fees. If you are using From Japan you will also pay all the transaction and extra fees for each item at this stage, while this is all up front for Buyee and Zenmarket buyers. You will get a variety of quotes from different shipping companies including FedEX, EMS, DHL, and so on. Some of these may be limited depending on your country or due to Corona-virus restrictions. In general DHL is fast, affordable and works most places. Depending on your proxy service you must instruct items for shipping within a certain timeframe of the warehouse receiving them (usually 30 or 45 days). Items that sit for more than this limit will start incurring a holding fee, typically  ¥100 a day. Once you pay your final shipping fee (and extra charges if you are using From Japan) your package should be collected by your chosen courier within a day or two and you will be given a tracking number.

5. Search Term Tips

Generally English is more than enough to get by on Japanese sites however it is worth it to learn the nuances of these Japanese websites. Sometimes you might have to search the same term multiple times with minor variations to get all the listings. For Example, “cp company” returns less results than “c.p. company”, “general research” returns less results than going to the brand category which an be found here: Y!JP LINK

Additionally, Style Zeitgeist compiled a list of general fashion search terms that can be found HERE.

You may find you will get more results by using Google Translate to find Japanese terms and put them in to either the auction/shopping search portal or the proxy’s portal in combination with English brand names. For example: “Stone Island” + “ナイロン” (Japanese for nylon) + jacket (auto-translated by Zenmarket).

Make sure to bookmark the more complex search terms, as this will save time and when placed in a bookmarks folder, you can access your narrowed searches very quickly to save time.

A Few Search Term Suggestions from XEONIQ

Y!JP not only has a large volume of good condition, used garments and accessories from well-known luxury and designer brands; but it also has a plethora of Japanese branded fashion items that you might have not heard of. Most of them are made in Japan, are of good quality and have interesting designs that may be of interest to the the 21st century global fashion consumer. Here’s a few search terms you might like to check out:

• Electric Cottage
• Vandalize
• GOODENOUGH
• Neighborhood Technical Apparel
• Alk Phenix
• Descente ALLTERRAIN
• “Ventile” “Gore-tex” et. al.

Beyond clothing, I’ve found both good prices and rare, hard to find items in the camera and car parts segments as well. Eye glasses seem especially inexpensive on Y!JP, with brand new, old season frames from luxury fashion brands such as Bally and Issey Miyake available from $10.

6. When to Use Japanese Proxy Buying

Japan’s secondhand markets are reliable, trustworthy and offer a plethora of fashion items you rarely see in the West, if at all. Knowing how to navigate the often-daunting websites is an essential skill for any fashion enthusiast looking to get a great deal. Often some of the best deals are found on listings with cloudy and out of focus images for price a fraction of what they should cost. Knowing what you’re looking at is possibly the most invaluable skill you can have when browsing these sites. That said, one should consider the utility and pragmatism around such sites and ensure that using these sites is the best use of one’s time and money. In my experience these sites are best for consumers looking to make volume purchases of Japanese brands. Five or more items at the very least to distribute the international shipping costs across the items.

Western brands can be found on these sites, however the best deals will almost always be for the Japanese pieces.  Western streetwear is almost all going to be more expensive on Japanese sites than on Grailed or eBay. From researching clothes for references on a mood board, to cross referencing prices or even for just discovering a new designer, these sites are undoubtedly a fantastic tool, resource and service; but keep in mind they are for a specific consumer and purchasing behaviour. Consumers who are looking to just buy one or two items at any given time might feel pressured to purchase items they might not actually want, all to make their package “worth it”. Users should be aware of this, and other related phenomena as it is easy to get caught into the rat race of internet fashion hyper consumerism.

One of the potential benefits of purchasing primarily through Japanese proxies is that you’ll avoid impulse purchases as the product will not be able to get to you as quickly as it would when buying directly from a retailer; and thus you will be conditioned to taking your time to determine how much you actually need or want an item and impulse buying that can occur with direct retail shopping is minimised.

Japanese proxy buying should be applied when you need a moderate or large number of items, want the best price possible and when the items you want are primarily from Japanese makers.

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