Japanese Yahoo auction

[Drax]

This question is technically teaware related...

I saw somebody mention elsewhere that you can use an intermediate to buy stuff from the Japanese Yahoo auction site... I guess that's sort of like what people do w/ Taobao...?

In any case, 2 question.

1. Is it actually possible to go direct and not use an intermediate?

2. Any recommendations on a good intermediate service?

Thanks!

[Robert Fornell]

Drax,

I have heard that there are folks on the ground in Japan will bid/buy for you however I haven't used anyone. I have an active account at a bank leftover from when I lived there which is necessary as almost all payments on Yahoo jp are furikomi or direct bank transfers. There's also the issue of many sellers not wanting to ship internationally......

Best of luck,
R

[Drax]

Thanks for the advice! I had noticed that hardly anybody would do international shipping, which sort of limits the possibilities...

I looked around, and there are indeed a number of websites dedicated to buying stuff for you. They each tack of fees in various places, but they all seem to amount to ~15% surplus (well, depending on the final price of the item... can go up to 100% for cheaper stuff).

I got what I was looking for. Not sure if I'll continue to use it, though. I think I'll stick with other Japanese vendors unless if I need to get something really uncommon...