Pros and Cons of Shopping at CDJapan

July 14, 2007
by Joseph Ward

When it comes to shopping for Japanese music products outside of Japan, the retail industry is somewhat limited. You might find a couple anime soundtracks, but Japanese pop or rock itself is hard to find. And traditional Japanese Enka is basically non-existent. Many of these stores sell Taiwanese bootleg versions. There are very few brick-and-mortar stores that offer Japanese music, forcing fans to shop online.

CDJapan, known as Neowing in Japan, is one possible choice. They provide good customer service in Japanese and English. Below is a list of pros and cons of shopping at CDJapan.

Pros

Fast shipping. On my last order, from the time I ordered it to the time I received it was just 7½ calendar days. This is a normal time frame in my experience.
You get to accumulate Frequent Shopper points. Each point is worth 1 yen and is used in increments of 100 on future purchases. I saved 500 yen on one of my recent purchases. Each product page displays the number of "F.S." points the product is worth.
It's directly from Japan. There are no middlemen.
CDJapan has never dissapointed me with selection. They have artists and products that other sites don't.

Cons

You can never buy the cheaper "Overseas" versions (if applicable). You can only get the Japanese version.
If you choose standard Express Mail Service (EMS) shipping or Air Mail, a signature is required upon delivery. If you're not present at the time of delivery, they will leave a note to ask you either to wait for another delivery attempt or pick it up at the post office.
Shipping costs are more expensive than comparable sites.
Transaction is done in yen rather than dollars. It gives you an estimate of what the dollar amount will be, but it may not be exact.

Overall, the fast shipping and Frequent Shopper points are the main reasons I shop at CDJapan. Even though the shipping costs are more expensive, the product price itself is usually less expensive. Contrarily, the product prices at YesAsia are generally more expensive, but the shipping is cheaper. If the product I'm looking for has a cheaper, legal "Overseas" version, I would patronize YesAsia.

The choice is yours. Who says you can't patronize multiple online shops?

CDJapan Online shop
http://www.cdjapan.co.jp

Alternatives to CDJapan:
YesAsia
http://www.yesasia.com

JpopHelp
http://www.jpophelp.com

HMV Japan
http://www.hmv.co.jp/index.asp?lang=en