Frequently Asked Questions

Order shipment

An order is shipped when all of its products have been stocked. For example, if your order includes an in-stock product together with a preorder scheduled in 3 months, the whole order will be shipped in 3 months, not before.

If you would like separate product shipments, as they arrive, please make separate orders.

Order update

To update information such as shipping address, phone number, etc. please contact us with your order number, old and new data. Note that for security reasons, if you cannot provide old data we may not update your order

Order cancellation

Preorders and unpaid orders can be cancelled. All other paid orders cannot be cancelled free of charge (see our restocking fee policy). To request cancellation of your order simply contact us with your order number.

Order returns

Products you don't want anymore

We only accept cancels and returns of unopened and brand-new products. Used products cannot be cancelled or returned. Our restocking fee is 20% of the product price. However if the product is no more selleable new (damaged during return due to a weak packaging, etc.) our restocking fee is 90%. Return shipping of products must be done via a trackable shipping method and we do not refund return shipping costs incurred by the customer.
Please double-check your cart and ensure that you are ordering the exact product you want.

Factory defects

If an item has a factory-defect we will request sharp photos to identify the defect and will decide if an exchange, refund or credit is in order.

Thanks to our quality checks at product arrival, and once again before package preparation, we drop most defective products before shipping.

Packages returned by Post

See package return information.

Damaged or Lost parcels

If an item has been damaged or lost during delivery we will provide a refund for EMS parcels after the results of Japan Post's investigation. This investigation may take up to about one month.

Investigation for non-tracked shipments is not possible after 2010-01-01 (source Japan Post: "Investigations of non-delivery of ordinary mail have been abolished."). Yet another reason to use EMS or another tracked shipping.

Product availability

• In stock Product is in stock at beNippon's warehouse. Preparation and shipping is usually done in one business day for EMS orders and under 3 days for other shipping methods.
• 2In stock There are only 2 of this product remaining in stock.
• Backorder Product is currently in stock at one or more of our suppliers' warehouses. We will backorder and stock it for you after the order's payment.
• Preorder7 Product is planned to be released on July (7) and we are already accepting reservations. Payment is due at release (See payment of preorders). Note that release is sometimes postponed by the manufacturer; we try to keep our data updated but oversights may occur.
• Preorder closed7 Product is not released yet but we cannot accept reservation anymore.
• Unavailable Product is no more available currently.

Used products

All our used products are in good or excellent condition. Books come with all pages and cover intact, but the "obi", a strip of paper sometimes added by publisher, may not be included (same for brand new products). Hobby products come in their original packaging most of the time. However, initially included bonuses (posters, card, CD, etc.) may no longer be included.

We cannot provide detailed information or photos of used products. However we do quality check all the products we receive: if we were to find a problem we would contact you.

As a general rule we ask that you do not expect to get a perfect new-like condition product. As long as you understand what a "second-hand" product is, there will be no deception.

Used product prices

Some used products may have a price higher than the original new price. This pricing is due to the new edition being no long available, becoming a rare and hard to find collector's product. As such, a used product's market price reflects this fact.

Sample photos

These sample photos show the worst level of damage we would accept for a "used" product. Of course, most of them don't even have damage aside from age!

The following photo showcases a figure that we would obviously not ship, should we receive it with a broken neck.

Genuine Japanese

All our products are genuine original Japanese products: we don't sell illegal, unlicensed or pirate products.

Most of the products we propose are made to be sold to Japanese living in Japan. Therefore, all manga and manuals are in Japanese language only, and electric appliances works with current voltage of 100 Volts.

Legit products

All our products are legit and officially distributed in Japan, including porno adult products ("hentai"). Before importing, please review your country's legislation; as the importer, you are sole responsible of your purchases.

Product warranty

All our brand-new electronic products are under manufacturer's warranty. See our warranty page for details.

Product photos

Photos are provided by suppliers and distributors. Most are usually those of prototypes: final products are mass produced, in particular figures and hobby, and as such some differences may appear.

Information on products

• Ghibli goods, plushes and toys
• Instructions for Totoro in Origami
• Japanese Idols Photobooks
• Japanese low table: the kotatsu
• Japanese electronic dictionary: the denshijisho

Payment methods

See the payment methods accepted.

Payment Currency

Credit card and PayPal payments are done in Japanese Yen, however accounts are charged in customer own currency. The conversion's actual rates are defined by credit card issuer, bank or PayPal and may differ a bit from the rates displayed for customers convenience on this site.

Preorder payment

Payment for preorders is required only after release. Reservation is free, however for popular items it may not be possible for us to fulfill all unpaid preorders. Paying your preorder before the order deadline will help to guarantee your product's availability.

Note that orders including both preorder products and in-stock/on-demand(backorder) products cannot be paid at release.

Preorders made before the deadline will receive 5% off.

Cancellation is possible up until release day. Abuse of our free preorder service, such as too many cancellations, may lead to the blacklisting of the abusing person.

Shipping methods

See the shipping methods proposed.

Delays

Total delay from order to delivery to your home depends on several successive steps:

1. confirm payment and start processing order (payment info)
2. in-stock availability and product(s) quality check
3. package preparation
4. delivery by shipping company (shipping info)

Note: If you are ordering for a birthday or other special event, you should take into account the longest delays announced, or your order may not arrive in time.

Stocking delays

Products In Stock are shipped under 24h when shipping method is EMS.

Here are the delays for stocking products not currently in-stock at our beNippon warehouse, marked with Backorder or Preorder

• New products:
  • Books: 3 to 6 days
  • Figures: 2 to 5 days
  • Electronics: 2 to 6 days
  • Other: 6 to 25 days
• Used products: 3 to 10 days
• Preordered products: 1 to 3 days after release if preordered before deadline, otherwise expect the normal delay for new products.

Note: All delays are in business days: excluding weekends and Japanese holidays. See info about our business days and holidays.

Packages returned by Post

For returned parcels where beNippon is at fault (incomplete address or phone number) we will reship free of charge.

In cases where beNippon is not at fault, EMS orders will be reshipped at the exact shipping cost, but for other shipping methods we will assess a reshipping fee of 10% on top of the original shipping cost.

To avoid returns to Japan we recommend contacting your local post office as soon as your package has been shipped to schedule delivery with them.

Location

beNippon is a Japanese company located in Japan. We have no shop open to the public, neither in Japan or other countries.

For more information see our about us page.