I've been using Mercari for the past month, and while many of you may know of it, you'll also know it is quite a hassle to work with when outside of Japan.
For those of you unaware, here is the keyword URL you can use to scour through general "Beyblade" listings, you'll notice it is very active, has sellers of every generation, and well below prices you're used to seeing elsewhere online:
https://www.mercari.com/jp/search/?keyword=ベイブレード
If you want to look for specific Beyblades in particular, you must use get an accurate translation of its name, and search for it using the bar at the top. You'll notice it will often keep listings up that have already been sold long ago, so be sure to only look for items without the big red "SOLD" icon on them.
Everything is incredibly priced relative to other online outlets, making it highly attractive. All the sought after beys/listings are bought within hours because of this, with certain things going in mere minutes, and normal proxy services either flat out don't buy things on Mercari, or only are only able to purchase items after a certain amount of time has passed. Usually meaning someone in Japan has gotten to it before you even have the chance to use a proxy service. You're also not usually able to negotiate the pricing, as proxy service businesses tend to avoid that altogether.
It isn't like eBay, you can't just create an account and link up your PayPal. It is essentially a second-hand goods website dedicated to people in Japan only. Because of this, only certain people, like Youtubers and dedicated collectors, with connections to Japanese natives have had the opportunity to buy from Mercari in real-time.
I don't think that is fair to all the other people who are interested, but simply don't know how to get in contact with a friendly or willing person in Japan who can buy things on their behalf immediately.
This is where I introduce to you my friend Teresa. She has been the person I've been dealing with directly and helping me snatch things for myself in time for a while now. SHe has also been helping Th!nk in securing the very last things he needs to complete his database. This is Teresa's WBO profile that I asked her to make:
https://worldbeyblade.org/User-TeresainTokyo
Teresa lives in Tokyo, she's an early-riser and is often available throughout the day to buy things on your behalf, or negotiate with sellers to get you a better deal. She is a personal middleman who is best contacted via her dedicated website found here! I can't say whether she'll be checking WBO often, but maybe. Here is how it works, if you want to buy things through her on Mercari ASAP:
1. She is a commissioned based liaison. If you want to purchase a rare plastic bey that is up for $50USD (~5k yen), for example, you'll need to send over $60USD to her PayPal (~6k yen).
* Remember that unlike other middlemen, she buys in real-time and is always willing to help you negotiate for a better deal with sellers. I've personally lowered prices on listings with her help that basically neutralized commission multiple times. (ex. listing X going for 2k, negotiated to 1.5k, paid 1.9k total)
2. You must have the funds already available and ready to send over, she does not buy things in advance and hold them until you can pay next week.
3. Contact her with the link to the listing you'd like to buy. Be ready to provide the full amount plus commission. Teresa is sweet, so if you've built up a decent rapport with her, you don't need to send it immediately, but do so within a few hours, be reasonable. It is technically her personal money and her personal account.
4. Provided step 2+3 are in order, she buys it for you, or negotiates with the seller based on a price you prefer. You then transfer over the proper amount to her via PayPal. Personally I have had zero problem sending her via F&F, but if you are inclined to send via G&S, you should be courteous enough to ensure that you account for the PayPal fee which is roughly 3% or she will not be getting the full payment owed.
5. When it arrives to her residence, which is typically a very fast process as I've come to learn, she will notify you. Teresa sends photos of the beyblades/purchases you've made to confirm that they meet your standards. If all is well, she leaves a positive review for the seller.
6. With your product in-hand, she will calculate the shipping cost to you. She can ship anywhere provided you are able to cover the cost.
7. Shipping cost gets sent over, you send over the amount, and she ships out your Mercari purchase.
8. It arrives and you have successfully bought something off of Mercari in real-time.
There are a few caveats.
- Teresa is a person with a job outside of this, not a proxy business, meaning she can't always be at our beck and call. Japanese tend to put in their beyblade listings at ~7am onwards, and it usually dies down by 11pm. Throughout that time of day, Teresa is typically available, but don't take it for granted or become agitated if she is busy. Sometimes I've missed a lot or two I've really wanted, but 99% of the time, I got what I wanted when I wanted it with her help. Message her and take it from there.
- Secondly, she doesn't know anything about Beyblade, so she cannot search on Mercari for you, you'll have to put in that elbow grease yourself. You have to provide her with the link or the name of the specific listing.
- Lastly, this is not a permanent issue, but given the pandemic is in full force still, not every shipping option is available to the Japanese public at this time. There are restrictions based on country currently. For example, from Japan to Canada, EMS is not available at this time.
It is sporadically updated but this is at the discretion of the government. If you have a particularly large order, she can make a few accommodations, though, as she has a few tricks up her sleeve. Just be aware that it is constantly changing until normalcy returns, but she will store things for you as long as you need.
For those of you unaware, here is the keyword URL you can use to scour through general "Beyblade" listings, you'll notice it is very active, has sellers of every generation, and well below prices you're used to seeing elsewhere online:
https://www.mercari.com/jp/search/?keyword=ベイブレード
If you want to look for specific Beyblades in particular, you must use get an accurate translation of its name, and search for it using the bar at the top. You'll notice it will often keep listings up that have already been sold long ago, so be sure to only look for items without the big red "SOLD" icon on them.
Everything is incredibly priced relative to other online outlets, making it highly attractive. All the sought after beys/listings are bought within hours because of this, with certain things going in mere minutes, and normal proxy services either flat out don't buy things on Mercari, or only are only able to purchase items after a certain amount of time has passed. Usually meaning someone in Japan has gotten to it before you even have the chance to use a proxy service. You're also not usually able to negotiate the pricing, as proxy service businesses tend to avoid that altogether.
It isn't like eBay, you can't just create an account and link up your PayPal. It is essentially a second-hand goods website dedicated to people in Japan only. Because of this, only certain people, like Youtubers and dedicated collectors, with connections to Japanese natives have had the opportunity to buy from Mercari in real-time.
I don't think that is fair to all the other people who are interested, but simply don't know how to get in contact with a friendly or willing person in Japan who can buy things on their behalf immediately.
This is where I introduce to you my friend Teresa. She has been the person I've been dealing with directly and helping me snatch things for myself in time for a while now. SHe has also been helping Th!nk in securing the very last things he needs to complete his database. This is Teresa's WBO profile that I asked her to make:
https://worldbeyblade.org/User-TeresainTokyo
Teresa lives in Tokyo, she's an early-riser and is often available throughout the day to buy things on your behalf, or negotiate with sellers to get you a better deal. She is a personal middleman who is best contacted via her dedicated website found here! I can't say whether she'll be checking WBO often, but maybe. Here is how it works, if you want to buy things through her on Mercari ASAP:
1. She is a commissioned based liaison. If you want to purchase a rare plastic bey that is up for $50USD (~5k yen), for example, you'll need to send over $60USD to her PayPal (~6k yen).
* Remember that unlike other middlemen, she buys in real-time and is always willing to help you negotiate for a better deal with sellers. I've personally lowered prices on listings with her help that basically neutralized commission multiple times. (ex. listing X going for 2k, negotiated to 1.5k, paid 1.9k total)
2. You must have the funds already available and ready to send over, she does not buy things in advance and hold them until you can pay next week.
3. Contact her with the link to the listing you'd like to buy. Be ready to provide the full amount plus commission. Teresa is sweet, so if you've built up a decent rapport with her, you don't need to send it immediately, but do so within a few hours, be reasonable. It is technically her personal money and her personal account.
4. Provided step 2+3 are in order, she buys it for you, or negotiates with the seller based on a price you prefer. You then transfer over the proper amount to her via PayPal. Personally I have had zero problem sending her via F&F, but if you are inclined to send via G&S, you should be courteous enough to ensure that you account for the PayPal fee which is roughly 3% or she will not be getting the full payment owed.
5. When it arrives to her residence, which is typically a very fast process as I've come to learn, she will notify you. Teresa sends photos of the beyblades/purchases you've made to confirm that they meet your standards. If all is well, she leaves a positive review for the seller.
6. With your product in-hand, she will calculate the shipping cost to you. She can ship anywhere provided you are able to cover the cost.
7. Shipping cost gets sent over, you send over the amount, and she ships out your Mercari purchase.
8. It arrives and you have successfully bought something off of Mercari in real-time.
There are a few caveats.
- Teresa is a person with a job outside of this, not a proxy business, meaning she can't always be at our beck and call. Japanese tend to put in their beyblade listings at ~7am onwards, and it usually dies down by 11pm. Throughout that time of day, Teresa is typically available, but don't take it for granted or become agitated if she is busy. Sometimes I've missed a lot or two I've really wanted, but 99% of the time, I got what I wanted when I wanted it with her help. Message her and take it from there.
- Secondly, she doesn't know anything about Beyblade, so she cannot search on Mercari for you, you'll have to put in that elbow grease yourself. You have to provide her with the link or the name of the specific listing.
- Lastly, this is not a permanent issue, but given the pandemic is in full force still, not every shipping option is available to the Japanese public at this time. There are restrictions based on country currently. For example, from Japan to Canada, EMS is not available at this time.
It is sporadically updated but this is at the discretion of the government. If you have a particularly large order, she can make a few accommodations, though, as she has a few tricks up her sleeve. Just be aware that it is constantly changing until normalcy returns, but she will store things for you as long as you need.
![[Image: uKF94LK.gif]](https://i.imgur.com/uKF94LK.gif)
![[Image: UwZsp7A.png]](https://i.imgur.com/UwZsp7A.png)
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