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How to Make Smart Japanese Hobby Purchases

Japanese companies crank out anime and manga merchandise like it grows on trees. There’s always something enticing fans, who empty their wallets voluntarily. You may not be a collector (or maybe you are), but there are things you can do to avoid going broke buying merchandise from your favorite franchises.

If you’re like me, you subscribe to particular series on CD Japan to get the latest announcements on releases. Doing so, means you can pre-order items before they sell out. There’s nothing like discovering a new figure, game, or magazine, just to realize it’s nowhere to be found because you were a few hours or days late.
February 2017 issue of Pash

February 2017 issue of Otomedia

Recently, I encountered this when I was trying to purchase the February issue of Otomedia magazine. Not realizing just how quickly it would sell, I ended up missing out the first round. I looked high and low for the issue, but my usual places were sold out. Once they are gone — they are gone. But you can get lucky. Amazon Japan got hold of additional copies,  and I promptly pre-ordered one. However, a few days later I received an email saying they didn’t know when they’d get the magazine. Apparently, I was just a second too slow. Although I was tempted to cancel, I didn’t, and I eventually got my own copy of the magazine.
Unless you have lots of cash lying around waiting to be given away to your favorite series, you have to think ahead.
For example, I only do pre-orders from places that won’t charge until the items are shipped. By subscribing to a bunch of series through CD Japan, I’m notified as soon as the pre-orders are available. I usually have two or more months to save for any big ticket items. They also have a wonderful option that let’s you add new items to your orders. This saves you money on shipping costs.
You may not be able to buy it all, so you must make trade-offs. I stared longingly at a monster-sized wall hanging of Midorima from Kuroko no Basuke and decided I wouldn’t get it. Instead, I ended up purchasing a few Midorima character CDs. Not only were they cheaper, but they are more practical than a poster (no matter how cool it was).
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Yuri Katsuki nendoroid

Some items take little thought to decide if I want them. I love nendoroids, and when I saw that Yuri!!! on Ice was getting them, I pre-ordered Yuri Katsuki without regret. They don’t come out for a few months and are inexpensive. If it was an expensive item, I’d save up the money for the item. I do that by dividing the price of the item (including any fees and shipping costs) by the number of months.
One pre-order I have is $133.71, which include three cushions from the Kuroko no Basuke series. I pre-ordered the items in two separate months (because I’d added additional items to the order). For simplicity, let’s say I pre-ordered everything in December. The items are shipping in March. So I divided $133.71 into four months and got $34 a month. Sometimes I fund the item well beforehand, or I drag it out. Either way works as long as I have the money by the time the items ship.
For items that require you to pay for them as soon as you buy them, such as items with low stock or sites that require you prepay to save your spot in the pre-order line, it gets trickier. I’ve come up with a way to handle this issue. Each week (or every other week, or once a month if you prefer), I set aside a particular amount. This is just like putting away savings, except it’s for unexpected purchases.
Sample photo of Theatrical Feature Kuroko no Basuke LAST GAME Middle Cushion "Shintaro Midorima"

Sample photo of Theatrical Feature Kuroko no Basuke LAST GAME Middle Cushion “Shintaro Midorima”

You’ll want to choose the amount based on what you can afford and past observations of what you’ve spent before. For me, I never buy more than $150 on items in any month. So that’s the figure I use and adjust from there. Below I’ve created two lists. The pre-order list has things you want to order in advance and not wait for the day they come out. Either they sell out fast or are costly items. These you’ll want to plan ahead on, especially if you have limited spending money. The second list are items that you can generally buy at any time without worry if they will sell out. So you can save for these items and they will likely still be around when you get to buying them. The exception are items that are super popular, like the February issue of Otomedia! Any other time, I can order Otomedia even after it’s released.
Pre-order: figures, merchandise (badges, key chains, posters, clothes, puzzles, etc), popular issues of magazines, popular franchises with items most likely to sell out before they are released, limited edition items
These can wait: manga, CDs (drama or music), magazines, books, most games unless they are limited editions, Japanese textbooks
If there is anything you take from this, it is: Please don’t put items on credit cards if you can’t afford to pay them off quickly! No matter how big of a fan you are, don’t sacrifice your financial health. If you know you want to spend money on anime and manga things, then plan for it. No use in buying everything and then having to sell your stuff because you can’t afford to pay rent!

How do you budget for your favorite items? Let me know in the comments.

Adrienne
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