If you are reading this, you probably already know that buying Japanese fishing tackle from Japan is significantly cheaper than buying it in America, Oceania, or Europe. Perhaps, you have been buying fishing rods and reels from Japan for a long time, or maybe you are new to the world of importing Japanese fishing tackle. Where, what, and how to buy is a difficult decision to make. Everyone has their own preferences regarding how and where they shop for fishing tackle from Japan. Some customers like to buy new items on sites like ZenMarket or Rakuten, and others are looking for bargains on Yahoo! Auctions.
This is our guide to Japanese fishing tackle sites that we recommend. We hope this information will help new customers understand what options there are and what to expect and for those experienced users to learn even more about other opportunities they may be missing.
First, let's look at the four largest and most popular stores: Rakuten, Yahoo Shopping, Amazon, and Yahoo! Auctions.
Rakuten Japan and Yahoo! Shopping
These two platforms are very similar. Usually, these platforms have the same products at almost the same price. The reason is that most Japanese fishing merchants sell their goods on both Rakuten Japan and Yahoo! Shopping. We recommend that you try not to split one order between the two platforms but instead buy one order from just one to save on domestic shipping within Japan.
If you are planning to purchase two goods, but you have added one product from Rakuten to your cart, and one from Yahoo! Shopping, the store will send your goods separately. This will cost you more on domestic shipping. Adding goods from one store on one platform will make the process faster and save you some money.
HINT! You can view other products from the same store by clicking on the store's name in the upper right corner of the product page.
Also, some stores offer free shipping on orders above a specific price. Usually, this amount varies from 5,000 to 10,000 yen, but there may be exceptions. If you plan to purchase several items from one store, check if they offer free shipping.
Amazon Japan
As for fishing tackle, Amazon Japan has a slightly smaller selection. However, in most cases, Amazon offers more information about the product (photos, specifications, and reviews) and a specific delivery date. Regarding Rakuten or Yahoo! Shopping, some stores only report on the availability of goods after placing the order, which, of course, is not very convenient for the buyer. However, Amazon has a drawback - it's not possible to ask questions to sellers (usually, this is compensated by decent descriptions of the products, but it's still unpleasant).
Read more about How to Shop on Amazon Japan.
Yahoo! Auctions
If you are looking for options for budget purchases, check Yahoo! Auctions. There are opportunities to purchase used fishing tackle in excellent condition - models that are no longer in production or unavailable from other online sites. In most cases, you can find a fishing bargain. Many Japanese are selling spinning rods, which were only used just a couple of times. But we must not forget that they are used items, and sometimes the description of the state of the goods may be subjective. If you decide to buy from Yahoo! Auctions, please be careful when reading the description of the goods and checking the seller's feedback.
And don't forget about domestic shipping. Depending on the seller, it may vary, so double-check before bidding. This can help you save an extra dollar.
Learn more about using Yahoo! Auctions on our site.
Other stores
In Japan, there are loads of different fishing tackle online stores. These stores are not represented on our site, but we can still accept orders from them. To place an order, copy the URL link of the product and paste it into our search bar.
Here are 3 of the most significant:
Yellowfish
This shop sales used tackle. We recommend this site to those looking for used fishing rods and reels at low prices but not ready to take risks associated with orders from auctions.
Their range is pretty extensive, and they offer detailed descriptions of their goods.
Learn how to order from Yellowfish through ZenMarket.
General information:
The shipping cost in Japan is 1080 yen (they do not combine spinners with reels, so in this case, the delivery will be charged twice). Shipping usually takes up to 3 days after ordering.
Naturum
Perhaps, you have already bought from this store on Rakuten, but if you are interested in the goods from this seller, then we advise you to make an order from their website. On Rakuten Japan, shipping will cost 680 yen, but the original online store offers free for many products. Also, shipping is free for orders over 6.500 yen.
The site has a simple interface. All categories are available in the drop-down menu on the left:
*Please note - we can not send stoves or burners.
CasterHouse
CasterHouse is a Japanese fishing store. And in our opinion, one of the best in Japan. Our customers share this opinion and often order products from there.
CasterHouse does not have an English version and doesn't accept credit cards, but what is so attractive about it?
First of all - the prices. They often offer the lowest prices and massive sales throughout the year.
You can see their sales through Google Translator.
Another advantage of CasterHouse is free domestic shipping for purchases over 5,000 yen.
Large fishing stores often trade on several Internet platforms and do not accurately reflect the availability of goods in stock. CasterHouse has no such problem. It sells only through its official website, so everything shown on its site is in stock.
We hope this blog post helped you with the advantages and disadvantages of online fishing stores in Japan.
If you noticed that we forgot to include some of your favorite Japanese fishing sites, let us know. We will be happy to add it to our list so our future readers and customers can learn even more.
