Stuff to buy in Japan

[janet999]

Hello all,

I'm currently on holiday in Japan and it's great. One thing I've noticed is there loads of strange stuff you can buy here. My friend suggested that I should buy some Japanese goods whilst I'm here and sell them for a profit when I return to the UK if I'm clever. Unfortunately I know nothing about manga and anime but she said people on this site might know what would be good to buy.

So, do you? What would you buy from Japan to sell whilst back in the UK? Not just manga related but other items as well if you know anything.

Thanks for the advice in advance.

Janet

[MistressPookyChan]

I know that crafty things are pretty popular in the US right now. Amigurumi, other knitting and crochet patterns and tools. I've also noticed some clothing and accessories are becoming popular. Think harajuku- fruits, gothic lolita, etc etc.

[Ertai87]

While I can't say I'm a fan of buying "souvenirs" and then turning them for a profit back home, there are some things you can buy.

First of all, of course manga and anime is popular. Try to find manga or anime that haven't been released in the UK. I know North America has yet to see such series as Doraemon, Lucky Star (Lucky Star is currently being released, but they're being slow about it), Yakitate Japan, and the new Evangelion 101, so those might be popular. However, remember that pretty much anything you buy will be in Japanese, for native Japanese people, so you might have a hard time selling it to people not versed in the language.

Additionally, Japanese video games are quite unique. I advise against buying anything for the Wii, XBox (original or 360), or Playstation (any of them) because those consoles are what's known as region-locked, meaning if you don't have a Japanese console, you can't play Japanese games (not entirely true, but that's the basic idea). However, the Nintendo DS and the Sony PSP are not region-locked, so those games are safe to buy and play in any region. For suggested games:

Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan! (1 and 2)
Taiko no Tatsujin (1 and 2)
Jump Super Stars
Jump Ultimate Stars
Tingle's Rupee Land
Mother (1, 2, and 3)

All except Mother are DS games. Mother is a Famicom game, Mother 2 Super Famicom, Mother 3 Game Boy Advance. However, Mother 1 and 2 were re-released in a combined version for GBA. Mother 3 is almost impossible to find (I found 1 copy between all the game stores I went to, and I went to *a lot* of game stores). Also, the Mother series are RPGs, meaning they might also be difficult to sell to people not versed in Japanese, although I can vouch for their quality (Mother 2 was released stateside as the incredibly popular Earthbound, rated the #1 game most people want to be put on the Wii Virtual Console, and I've personally played Mother 3 and almost finished it).

None of those games are available anywhere outside Japan (internet stores notwithstanding), although the Ouendan series has an English version called Elite Beat Agents. The basic game is the same, but the songs are different (and imo better) in the Japanese version.

[aishiteru333]

Goth/Amai Lolita would be very popular once you return to the UK... I wish I went to Japan, I would spend all my money on Lolita. Also, figurines would make nice gifts if you sold them.

[Ruby_MoonT]

I was going to suggest goth/loli stuff as well but those things are expensive in Japan as well so I don't know how much of a profit you can make. (Actually, I think everything in Japan is expensive so I'm not sure if you'll make a profit off selling anything)

But if you still want to go for it, then there's a somewhat cheaper goth/loli shop called "Body Line" in Harajyuku. They have an online store but they have a store at Harajyuku's famous Takeshita street. If they haven't moved the store since last time I've been there, it should be located around middle of the street on a second floor of another shop.

Other things I would suggest are anime goods from Animate. Posters, keychains, cellphone straps are the basics but Animate also has bags, cups, pens, etc. Pretty much the goodies they sell at anime stores/conventions. Then you can prolly bring them back and then jack-up the price :p. There's a main store in Akihabara (of course) and there's another store in Ikebukuro. (the Ikebukuro store is catered more toward the female fans so they might have *coughYaoistuffcough*)

[Soulshift]

Technically speaking, the Animate in Ikebukuro is the headquarters of Animate.

[Datenshi]

Technically speaking, the Animate in Ikebukuro is the headquarters of Animate.

Yeah, I was a bit surprised to learn that when I went there after I moved to Meguro. It's a lot more crowded there now after what happened in Akihabara.