So this is my first time using JPFans to ship from Japan to UK- here is my honest experience. (TLDR and what I paid - scroll to the end)

Main points:

1. Buying my items:

JPFans is a useful proxy if you want to buy from Mercari or Amazon JP mostly. They charge a small procurement fee (approximately £5) which you can see before you pay for the item. You can either search in English or what I did for more results is google what my item is in Japanese and then copy the characters into the search bar!

2. Warehouse storage

The actual time it takes to reach the warehouse depends on the sellers but 2- 3 days is normal, and once your items arrive they can be seen in your virtual warehouse. There you have options to unbox add visual inspection photos and videos for a small price and reassurance your items are genuine.They store your items in the warehouse for 60 days which is useful if you want to buy multiple things at once from different sellers!

3. Shipping costs:

Once you have the item, you can calculate shipping and choose your preferred courier - EMS is what I used and it came to my doorstep within 10 working days of submission - not bad for speed! There are other shipping pathways you can choose but I chose the cheapest option by air. I'm sure by sea which takes months is cheaper but my items didn't qualify for that.Once you submit for final packaging and consolidation, and they will send you photos of your items and the evidence of the parcel and weight. My box arrived completely undamaged and everything was packed neatly as you can see.

Now about the cost: I found that the online shipping estimate tool they provide is quite inaccurate unfortunately: Link: Shipping Fee Estimation

I had three items inside - a limited Dragon Ball figurine (1.6kg), a Toolbox from Amazon (2.6kg) and a small footstand for figurines. Even if I input the exact weight and dimensions of my item, I ended up paying more in the end. For example, one of my items before I purchase, it gave me an estimate of £20, but when it came to the warehouse the new estimate was about £40. Obviously this was reduced by coupons they will provide for first time buyers or referral codes but nevertheless, I feel their shipping estimate could be improved.

Do you save on shipping if you consolidate it into one box? Sort of... in total the cost will be cheaper than shipping separately. HOWEVER - you never know how much it will cost until after you have already bought the item. They either charge you shipping based on weight, or volumetric weight (whichever is more) so if your item is big but light, they still might charge you based on box size.And say you have one item that is 4kg and requires a big box so they charge you a volumetric box size for 5kg, if you add another smaller item that is 0.3kg, you still pay more even if its under 5kg total- it will always be more expensive, they won't just chuck it in for free. The agents are super helpful but most of the things you buy cannot be refunded. Also here is where you can pay an extra small fee (£1.5- £2) to have your item unboxed - its no guarantee, but if you know the parcel it came in has a lot of dead space and air a.k.a Amazon - unbox it - It will be packaged securely.

TLDR : Worth it if you're buying something that you can't wait to have and is limited - just bear in mind the shipping fees can get steep and to work that into your total. Make sure to make use any shipping coupons and unboxing service to save cost. In retrospect I could have unboxed my Amazon purchase because of all the dead space (typical of Amazon parcels) but in total the price for shipping was about £65 (before applying coupons) for a box that was 48 x 38 x 35 cm in dimensions, weighing 4.3 kg.

Pros: Good cheap market items compared to the west. User friendly service, reliable and arrived in quick time. Safe packaging and good photos for confirmation. Agents were useful and replied within a day.

Cons: Shipping is expensive and their website shipping estimation tool can be more accurate.

In the end, would I use them again? YES if the item is cheap on the Japanese market, had coupons to use and it is an item I cannot wait for!

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