If at any time these sites start to feel too painful to use, go ahead and purchase yourself a handful of wholesale edamame soy beans. All worries melt away when you have a soybean in your mouth.
You've decided to dive headfirst into the wonderful and sometimes wacky world of Japanese wholesale sourcing. Noice! And maybe you don't know how to read or speak Japanese. Also noice!
Get ready for a world of pain. ψ( ` ∇ ´ )ψ
It's not going to be easy sourcing Japanese wholesale products, but it doesn't have to be super hard either. We're going to talk about the 3 'least painful places' where you can source Japanese products (food and physical goods) at wholesale prices... but before we embark on this 'grand adventure of wholesale wonder', remember:
- You can always use Google Translate or ChatGPT to translate whatever you need.
- Sometimes, you won't be able to purchase wholesale goods from vendors unless you have a Japanese bank account or Japanese credit card. In 90% of cases, this won't be a problem though.
- If you don't have a Japanese address, most of these vendors aren't going to be able to ship to you. If you're buying in bulk, you'll probably want a freight forwarding service or 3PL (third-party logistics) to assist you with this... like ours! If you really want to read our ad for some reason, go ahead and skip to the end of this post.
- You're going to want to copy/paste the following kanji: 卸. This kanji is "oroshi" and it means "wholesale". Whenever you search for something, make sure that kanji is included.
Why Source from Japanese Wholesalers?
Japanese products are known for their quality, innovation, and unique aesthetic. From stationery that will magically make people at work think you're not boring, to kitchen tools that ordinary people pay absurdly large amounts of money for, Japanese goods can add that refinement, uniqueness, or a special "WTF factor" to your store's offerings.
Also, people don't really "ooh" and "aah" anymore when you tell them your products were handmade by children at a sweatshop in China; but say that your products were handmade by children at a sweatshop in Japan and they'll say things like "Kawaii!" or "I also love watching anime!"
Least Painful Japanese Wholesale Platforms
SUPER DELIVERY
They had to capitalize the whole name or risk getting sued by the other "super deliverer".
How to use:
- Create an account (it's free! You know what else is free? Hitting that LIKE AND SUBSCRIBE BUTTON AND SMACKING THAT LITTLE BELL SO YOU NEV-- oh wait this is a blog post.)
- Browse categories or search for specific items.
- Place your order and wait for those sweet, sweet products to arrive.
Tip: We're talking about the Japanese Super Delivery site here by the way. We've never used the "Super Delivery International" site before, but looking at reviews, it seems to be alright. Then again, it might be run by a sweaty old guy living in the middle of nowhere who's just in it for your money, but that's probably not far off from the regular Super Delivery site either.
Rakuten
This is how it feels to buy products on Rakuten. This is also how it feels to sell products on Rakuten.
How to use:
- Sign up for a Rakuten account. (Can you believe it? This one is also free.)
- Browse products or search for specific items. Don't forget to include the kanji 卸 in your search. Without it, you'll get a lot of non-wholesale results as well.
- Get ready to click through a bunch of absurdly cluttered pages after you find what you want. There's probably going to be at least 5 listings for it at various prices, delivery fees, and tax.
- Make sure you tick the "don't subscribe to mail magazine" option. You'll have to do this EVERY SINGLE TIME YOU PURCHASE FROM A NEW VENDOR. The moment you forget to do this, you're dead.
Pro tip: Take advantage of Rakuten's loyalty program, called "Rakuten Points". It's part of your account anyway, and there's so many ways to get more points. POINTS! GODDAMN WE LOVE POINTS. Oh, also you can usually get free domestic shipping if you purchase up to a certain value of product. Each vendor is going to be different.
Orosy
Always wanted a cursed doll for you or a loved one? They don't have that here, but if you buy an artisanal doll and take the first 5 letters out, that's pretty cursed.
How to use:
- Sign up for a free account (wow, this seems to be a recurring pattern for some reason!)
- Browse an endless sea of fashionable, fairly expensive wholesale products. There's a lot less selection compared to the other sites we have in this post, but that's to be expected with artisanal things.
- Place your order.
Pro tip: Right now Orosy is pushing 'free domestic shipping'. Use that to your advantage, and also make sure that the vendor you order from is actually on board with offering free shipping. There are a lot that don't.
Tips for Sourcing Success (Or How to Avoid Becoming a Cautionary Tale)
- Mind the minimums: Many of the vendors on the sites we've mentioned here have 'minimum order values', but some may have 'minimum order quantities' instead. If you need 10 Hello Kitty toasters and you can only find a wholesaler with a '100 unit minimum order' policy, consider looking for a different product... or pivoting to opening a Hello Kitty toaster museum.
- Negotiating is usually a "No": Most wholesalers won't be willing to negotiate. In Japan, what you see is usually what you get... at least until you've bought from them enough to establish a trusting relationship.
- Calculate all costs: Shipping, customs, and taxes can add up faster than a Chinese 5th grader at the national 'math league'. Factor in all costs when pricing your products, or prepare to end up with negative margins.
- Learn some Japanese: A little effort goes a long way. Plus, it's fun to yell "KAWAII!" every time you find a cute product. Do it in public too, especially if you want people to stare at you in loathing.
- Check that it's shippable: Make sure the products you're trying to purchase can actually be shipped to you. For example, most courier services in Japan don't ship food internationally, and 99% of them won't touch anything related to perfume.