Global Rakuten shutting down

[nicole0612]

I just received an email stating that Global Rakuten will be ceasing operations within the month. It seems that Rakuten itself will still be operating within Japan, and perhaps some other countries (I am in the USA). There was a link sent in the email, and as far as I can understand, shoppers in the USA can still purchase from the Rakuten site, but will need to file for a Japanese address from a forwarding service in order to receive packages. It is sad, I have always enjoyed interacting with Japanese sellers, and unique items can sometimes be found. It was a strange coincidence, because I was interested in purchasing an item I just located on Global Rakuten that cannot be found in the USA, but the seller’s storefront had a message in Japanese regarding the inability to ship items at the moment. I sent them a message to ask for further details, so perhaps that’s why I received the email from the Rakuten site.

 

[resplendent]

Thanks for sharing...I've only purchased 1 item from the Rakuten marketplace in Japan, but it's still interesting. I would be sad if they completely shut down international sales, but it sounds like they are just changing how they do things. While I'm in Canada, I do some US shopping via forwarders, so it sounds like if I want to buy from Rakuten Japan, it will be a similar setup.

 

[nicole0612]

Thanks for sharing...I've only purchased 1 item from the Rakuten marketplace in Japan, but it's still interesting. I would be sad if they completely shut down international sales, but it sounds like they are just changing how they do things. While I'm in Canada, I do some US shopping via forwarders, so it sounds like if I want to buy from Rakuten Japan, it will be a similar setup.

Yes, I think I will look into it as well. There is an item that I just found that I would like to buy that is not available anywhere else. The problem is the language barrier on the regular Rakuten site.

 

[nova_girl]

I received that email as well, and placed an order today that will likely be my last Rakuten Global purchase which makes me sad. Like you, I was often able to find unique pieces there often at very good prices. I was under the impression that you didn't need to use the Rakuten Global Express service to shop at the Japanese Rakuten site but I'll have to do some more research.

 

[nicole0612]

I received that email as well, and placed an order today that will likely be my last Rakuten Global purchase which makes me sad. Like you, I was often able to find unique pieces there often at very good prices. I was under the impression that you didn't need to use the Rakuten Global Express service to shop at the Japanese Rakuten site but I'll have to do some more research.

Let me know what you find out! When I go to the Japanese site and try to purchase something, it asks for a Japanese address only. I have looked into a couple of forwarding services. There is an item on Japan Yahoo Auctions where a lot of these shops co-list that I really want to buy, but I’m not sure how to make the extra costs the most manageable. It’s a little sad that with Japanese Rakuten/Japanese Yahoo Auctions shipping to the USA we will have to pay Japanese taxes + customs fees. Of course, visiting Japan in person now is not an option to get the tax-free price. I wonder if there are some reliable personal shoppers on Japan for fine jewelry purchases? Let me know if you find out anything else to help our shopping for rare items in Japan!

 

[nova_girl]

Let me know what you find out! When I go to the Japanese site and try to purchase something, it asks for a Japanese address only. I have looked into a couple of forwarding services. There is an item on Japan Yahoo Auctions where a lot of these shops co-list that I really want to buy, but I’m not sure how to make the extra costs the most manageable. It’s a little sad that with Japanese Rakuten/Japanese Yahoo Auctions shipping to the USA we will have to pay Japanese taxes + customs fees. Of course, visiting Japan in person now is not an option to get the tax-free price. I wonder if there are some reliable personal shoppers on Japan for fine jewelry purchases? Let me know if you find out anything else to help our shopping for rare items in Japan!

So I did some browsing on Rakuten Ichiba, and it looks like if you click on the 'See All Shipping Methods and Shipping' link under the price and select the overseas option it will tell you if a shop ships overseas. It looks like EMS or FedEx is the shipper but I haven't gone through the whole process to see if they'll allow an overseas address or if you have to use the forwarding service. So maybe there's some hope after all?

 

[nicole0612]

So I did some browsing on Rakuten Ichiba, and it looks like if you click on the 'See All Shipping Methods and Shipping' link under the price and select the overseas option it will tell you if a shop ships overseas. It looks like EMS or FedEx is the shipper but I haven't gone through the whole process to see if they'll allow an overseas address or if you have to use the forwarding service. So maybe there's some hope after all?

Thank you. I sent a message to a seller last week through Rakuten (thinking about using the forwarding service, but then decided it was too complicated) and they said that EMS is currently not running to the USA so they are using Fedex only. That seller did not ship directly to the USA, but it’s good to know that some might!

 

[Shan9jtsy]

I had shopped with Rakuten global market but switched to Rakuten Ichiba long ago, the original Japanese Rakuten Ichiba website has more features that lacks in the Rakuten global market website (Eg. saving items to wishlist, shop-specific coupons). You can login with the same ID and PW on Rakuten ichiba. Furthermore, Rakuten Ichiba will displace all the hits that meet your search keywords, while Rakuten global market only shows those items that listed by shops that will readily provide international shipping.

For forwarding method, I recommend Rakuten global express, they largely ship via EMS and shipping cost is very reasonable. No Fedex or UPS tho with Rakuten global express. They can group multiple shipments into one and all communication can be done in English.

 

[nicole0612]

I had shopped with Rakuten global market but switched to Rakuten Ichiba long ago, the original Japanese Rakuten Ichiba website has more features that lacks in the Rakuten global market website (Eg. saving items to wishlist, shop-specific coupons). You can login with the same ID and PW on Rakuten ichiba. Furthermore, Rakuten Ichiba will displace all the hits that meet your search keywords, while Rakuten global market only shows those items that listed by shops that will readily provide international shipping.

For forwarding method, I recommend Rakuten global express, they largely ship via EMS and shipping cost is very reasonable. No Fedex or UPS tho with Rakuten global express. They can group multiple shipments into one and all communication can be done in English.

This is great news. I love EMS, but every seller has told me so far that EMS is not currently shipping to the USA. Is that where you are located? Thanks!

 

[Shan9jtsy]

This is great news. I love EMS, but every seller has told me so far that EMS is not currently shipping to the USA. Is that where you are located? Thanks!

Yes, EMS to USA is currently suspended due to Covid19. I am in Canada, shipments are still accepted but with significant delay.

 

[eagle1002us]

Thank you. I sent a message to a seller last week through Rakuten (thinking about using the forwarding service, but then decided it was too complicated) and they said that EMS is currently not running to the USA so they are using Fedex only. That seller did not ship directly to the USA, but it’s good to know that some might!

That's good to know about EMS b/c when I get Japanese HS I request EMS. Lately it seems that Japanese sellers are offering free shipping that apparently takes a while to arrive. Your info is helpful. Thanks Nicole!