Shopping In Japan

 Shopping in Japan is a beautiful experience! I love how they make everything beautiful and appealing. Here are a differences of shopping in Japan than in USA.

The first thing is that if you are trying clothes on, they will ask you to remove your shoes in the dressing room. They may also have a facial cover for you to put on so that your makeup or sweat won't get on the item. They are very polite about this, so please remember to do it. Often the item you are trying on isn't the item you will purchase. They have "try on" items and then in the back, they have the same items already wrapped and ready for purchase. I actually like this since you won't take home an item of clothing that has been tried on a thousand times by other shoppers and I kinda wish we'd do that too. It also makes their sales floor less crowded since they only have displays out, not their inventory. Maybe it's also Inventory Loss protection, but I kind of doubt it. It just looks really nice.

Clothes shopping in Japan is awesome, but they are limited to a few sizes. I'm sure there are larger sizes somewhere, but what I've found in most of the stores, they have three sizes: S, M and F. I haven't figured out if the F stands for Free (meaning it's open sizes, meaning it fits more than one size) or Fits All. I've seen both, and maybe it's also a regional thing. Fits All was in Osaka and Free in Tokyo. If someone knows, let me know. For the most part, I fit into medium pretty well. I'm short, five two and the weight of about 125 pounds. I was able to fit into a medium-sized pair of jeans no problem. I actually really love the pair and wished I had more. If you are larger than I am or taller, you might be able to buy other things, just not jeans and dresses. Skirts and tops are still an option. 

Second hand shops. Japan has a gifting culture and when people receive a gift they don't want, they turn around and sell it to a second-hand shop. So you'll see them all over. These are my favorite because you can get name brand items at a discount. I loved it more in Osaka. The prices seemed to be cheaper, but I also went three years apart and the second trip could just be that there was more inflation. But I was able to get a designer dress and two pairs of leather ankle boots for around $80. The last time I got a Burberry lightweight jacket for like $45. They have a massive collection of Coach purses for some reason and a lot of High End stuff like Gucci and LV. 

Most bigger stores in the city have Apple Pay or Touche. Or you can pay with card. If you are out in the county or near small tourist shops be sure to have cash on hand. Also, place the money in the tray provided. And take the money from the tray. If you hand anyone anything or take anything, do so with two hands.

Bags. Like the US they have carrier bags. They may charge extra. I always carry a backpack for most of my purchases to save me money. I usually end up throwing carrier bags away before I come home. I just don't have room in my suitcase for them. Don't worry about the rain; they have little raincoats for the bags. Some salespeople will take the bag out to the front of the store before handing it to you. Just be aware. 

Fragrances. I noticed that they don't have very strong smells in their fragrances. I think it's because the Japanese travel a lot on the subway and trains and don't like other people smelling up the place. They even have a term for it called smell assault or something. Which is very different than France, where all the perfume is highly potent and lasts a long time.

Technology. Most of their appliances will take the same plug as the US 120V I believe it is. But still, I avoid buying appliances (like a rice cooker my husband was eying) because all the instructions will be in Japanese.

Pop up shops. In the mall, they might have a small corner dedicated to "pop up" shops. These could be a small vendor who rented a space for the weekend. Or it could be a popular anime shop within a shop that is selling merchandise. I grabbed some Apothecary Diaries merch at a pop up shop in Kawasaki. I also shopped at a pop up boutique of a designer from Hong Kong.

Tourist vendors. The touristy places will have different stuff than the regular stores. This is where you find postcards, little samurai swords (be careful bringing home fake samurai swords--we had to declare before leaving the country that they were indeed fake. It was quite the rigamarole), engraved chopsticks, Studio Gibli stuff. They also have little towels. People use them in their bags after washing their hands and wiping sweat in the summer. I honestly don't buy much at the touristy vendors. I like small shopping centers instead. 

Jump stores. At the top of some malls they have anime heaven. These are called Jump stores. You probably already know this if you watch a lot of anime. Jump is the distributor or perhaps the publisher of the anime. So if that's on your list, be sure to look that up.

Things I like to buy in Japan: clothes (I'm short), second-hand items, anime stuff, Sanryo stuff (Hello Kitty et al), kitchen gadgets, wash cloths, silk, kimono stuff, chopsticks, stationary,. 

My next post will be on eating out and food!