“I've been using Buyee for the past couple of months now, and it is a super helpful proxy for overseas customers. Their fees are pretty transparent and can compete against other Japanese proxies out there.
The entire process is a little less than straightforward if you don't read everything up front, but they do spell it out in their other pages for those that read. The nice thing is that they've started offering more promotions for free international shipping or free proxy fees since they took feedback about how it was expensive. They offer a wide variety of shipping options, along with package consolidation services, which is super helpful.
I've bought many items from Mercari JPN, which has official affiliation with Buyee. Because it is a proxy, that means Buyee acts as a middleman to buy things from the Japanese sites on your behalf, and therefore, it can take 1-2 business days to process and secure your order for Mercari.”
“before getting to know Buyee, I wasn't able to purchase anything from japan as many stores, like Mercari only allow locals to purchase. I am very thankful to have get to know Mercari! Be sure to check them out, especially if you want to purchase from Japanese sellers but is unable to do it!”
“Opened Buyee account recently and made several purchases. Well informed process. My orders were shipped by EMS or registered small package (air). Not a single problem. Hope that they may reduce the package consolidation fee in the future.”
“A great platform to buy some rare collectible items like japanese Music-CD's. Fine service - easy and quick handling!! It would be 5 Stars if they can lower service fees a bit?!”
“I'd looked into using services for bidding on Japanese auction sites going back in time, but they all wanted the money upfront before bidding - however seeing a mention of Buyee's alt approach in a YT video in mid-January then decided to give them a go.
Clearly the gods were smiling, as this coincided with a lot for a set of Japanese Duran Duran Fan Club material that I'd been searching for for years (inc a load of bits that I didn't know existed, as information is sparse) - & have kept on buying since... ...building up packages over each 30 day holding period, as combining postage to the UK is far more economical.
So, on the plus side, I've gotten a load of memorabilia over the last few months that either never shows up on the likes of eBay or at significantly cheaper prices all in, than either eBay or the few Japanese stores that particularly cater for the international market... ...& everything sent has turned up exactly as expected & really well re-packaged - though I have paid for extra packaging on the combined packages.
On the neutral side, there was a bit of a learning curve - where I foolishly started off by getting protective packaging on the lots as opposed to waiting until the end - spending more money than I should have done.
(& there was a lot which didn't arrive to the warehouse, but Buyee refunded that very quickly when I contacted them after the 14 day period - & clearly isn't their fault)
On the negative, the 3 things that I would pick out are -
1.If the auction states that the buyer pays for postage (within Japan), you're not told by Buyee how much that cost until you arrange for the package to be sent internationally - which is problematic for budgeting.
(I now have a good idea what the extra packaging, international shipping & customs fees will be - but not knowing if you've built up £50 or £100 or...??? of domestic postage within Japanese is problematic)
2. Whilst Buyee have had some offers on their fees during the time I've used them, it's uneconomical to buy *very* low value lots - as, esp when there's no offers available, the set fees can end up being far more than the item.
(though on the plus side you're still paying the same fee on expensive lots)
3. &, whilst I can completely appreciate that there are some sellers who refuse to deal with the likes of Buyee - & hence you can't bid on some items... ...whilst a handful of others you have to ask Buyee if they'll allow ... ...they have some weird blanket bans that can't even be asked about - so, for example, I can't buy any historical concert tickets on Mercari in the "Tickets > musics > Overseas artist" category - where I'm guessing they are blocking them all on the basis that they 'might' be for upcoming concerts where there could be issues with reselling.
All of that said though, once you get to know the quirks then, overall, it's a really great service - &, whilst there's some limitations, I wouldn't hesitate to reccomed them (& have done so on a Duran forum).”
“Great proxy to use for Japan Yahoo Acution. Well organized system, lots of options to choose from to enhance purchasing experiences. However, everything comes with cost. Although there is a lot of fees, I still think it is well worth it.”
“Been using Buyee for Yahoo auction, easy to use, well organized system, lots of options you can choose from to make purchasing more pleasant. However, everything comes with a cost. Although the service fees is slightly more than other Forwarders, I still think it does worth it and will continue to use Buyee.”
“By far I find that the services are all good, most important I can get those Hard to find items :)
Hope in future can give out more discount coupon for Shipping !
Keep up the Good works :)”
“I've been using Buyee for a couple of years now, their service have good so far.
Only a couple of hiccups but nothing major.
I'm happy with their services & hopefully, they'll keep it up.”
“Buyee provides useful service to get goods from Japan.
Frequent promotional coupons help save costs.
Wish consolidation fees & shipping fees could be reduced by slim-down the package size.
Complainted about the "Basic Plan" should be by default but ignored.
Overall satisfied with my 7-years service since 2003.”
“I only buy once, and I will definitely buy more from buyee. I don't have any experience with returns or refunds, but the price I find are very fair in my opinion, and they have quite fast delivery.”
“A place to find local Japanese product that easing your payment with Credit Card. I would suggest Buyee to increase the minimum bid limit to an old customers.”
“I got my first package a month ago, shipping was fast but sadly quite expensive as you need to pay for both the seller shipment fee to the warehouse and shipment again to your home/office.
Items came in great condition and as described. Customer service was also very helpful and informative when I had questions, since that was my first time using this service.
Overall I enjoyed my use of the service, I look forward to shipping my items again soon!”
“Opportunity to buy direct japanese goods from japanese websites and auctions... Great service provided also in english. Excelent quality, great customer service , I use it all the time! Thank zou Buyee !”
