Tokyo Pirates
Month
I will be taking on a part-time job in the coming October, which unfortunately means I won’t be able to commit myself to this service full-time anymore.
As a result, from the 25th September, I will no longer be accepting auction orders or online orders. I will be doing in-store only. I am unsure yet if it will be restricted to lolita only or if I will continue to do everything. It depends on how busy things get, but for now it will be general.
Regarding online orders, I will not be handling them myself after September, but I am going to be training a friend (and helping where necessary) to take on that side of the business. So, online orders will be available again soon after. I shall make another announcement when they can be accepted again.
Please be aware that although it will be under the Tokyo Pirates name she will be running things in her own style. This means she will be starting off with the current framework, but will be able to decide her own fees later and her own restrictions. I will not have a say in how she runs that side of things, and it will depend on her own other commitments. It will also be a probation period as she sees whether she can integrate the shopping service into her schedule.
She is from Thailand, but speaks fluent English. I can vouch for her in saying she’s a lovely and honest person which is why I’m entrusting this part of my precious service baby to her. :)
I apologize for any convenience this might cause some of my absolutely wonderful, regular customers. I don’t know if this will be a permanent state of things, but for now I hope I can still continue to do business with many of you! (^_^)
Hello ^^ Yes, that would be no problem. If it’s a perishable item though I can’t guarantee its condition once it arrives to you.
Hello! ^^ Things are back to the normal rate now, so feel free to send me an email. :)
enkran said: I just have to say that you really do an amazing job, love! ❤️ I hope you get to continue the ss for a long time! （＾ν＾）
Aw, thank you so much! That’s really kind. :D
Closet Child’s Secret Closet
More items from Closet Child that they haven’t advertised online! ^^
Angelic Pretty - TOY PARADEワンピース OP (mint) - 16,800 yen
Angelic Pretty - Dreamy Dollhouse JSK (mint) - 14,800 yen
Angelic Pretty - Cosmic JSK (lavender) - 28,800 yen
Angelic Pretty - Milky Planet JSK (lavender) - 14,800 yen
Angelic Pretty - Cameo Window JSK (wine) - 24,800 yen
Angelic Pretty - Labyrinth of Rose halter JSK (pink) - 12,500 yen
Alice and the Pirates - Clock Rabbit Salopette (brown) - 16,800 yen
Alice and the Pirates - White Rabbit Lop Ear Silk Hat (brown) - 10,800 yen
Baby, the Stars Shine Bright - Big Usakumya Backpack (black) - 14,800 yen
Angelic Pretty - Melty Chocolate KC (pink) - 2,800 yen
Angelic Pretty - Musee du Chocolat KC (pink) - 3,000 yen
Baby, the Stars Shine Bright - Camelia Princess blouse (white) - 7,800 yen (stain on frill collar)
MILK - Horoscope Dress (monotone) - 22,800 yen
MILK - Ice-cream Dress (white) - 19,800 yen
Alice and the Pirates - Pirate Alice print JSK II (ivory) - 5,800 yen
Angelic Pretty - Dreamy Horoscope skirt (black) - price unknown
Angelic Pretty - Jewelry Jelly JSK (lavender) - 7,800 yen
To order (if still available) simply email contact@tokyopirates.com
(Don’t miss a dress! Get updates straight to your inbox and be the first to know. Simply email contact@tokyopirates.com and put ‘Subscribe’ in the subject line to join the mailing list. You can unsubscribe at any time.)
I started approximately one year ago, and I kind of got into it by accident. I was actually planning to leave Japan last year, but I was taking a couple of months off before I left. To make a little extra change on the side I offered to do a shopping service. Things just took off from there and I’m still here. :D
My favourite thing about it is getting to be my own boss and the freedom that comes with it. The other best part is when I manage to get something that someone really wanted and have been searching for for ages. It’s like a long-term treasure hunt and is really gratifying to see people happy.
One of the hardest things is probably the time it takes. The actual shopping is only a fraction of the time. What takes the most time is all the paperwork, shipping and admin. I also can’t take a full day off without possibly missing something for an order too, so yeah, time I guess - that and the moments of sheer panic when I don’t know if I’ve messed something up. xD That’s when accurate records and organization help a ton. You should see my excel spreadsheets. They’re like the patchwork quilt of a crazy person. I’m hiring a friend part-time soon though so that should improve both service quality and my time! :D
It’s a lot of fun and I love having the opportunity to do it. It’s the sole reason I decided to stay in Japan because I can’t imagine having a better job. I’d definitely only recommend it to those who are willing to commit though. Being a one-person service means you can’t drop the ball. I probably won’t be able to do it forever (depends on visa stuff), but for now I love it. <3
Hello all! I’m just passing on the message. The lovely misshamiltonswardrobe has put this OP up for sale and is looking for anyone interested. ^^ It’s brand new, and just to add my own two cents - this series is stunning! The pictures don’t do it justice. It has silver thread woven throughout and sparkles ever so slightly while still being elegant and understated. I should know, I drooled over every colourway and shape while it was out, and even bought one for myself.
Hello lovelies ~ Today I have for sale my BRAND NEW Baby, The Stars Shine Bright Ave Maria OP in Ivory! Never even taken out of its package…For TRADES, I am open to ANYTHING! Show me what you have. Also interested in the Ave Maria Light Green skirt. For SALE, make me an offer, I am willing to accept payment plans and will look at *any* offer! Send me a message here on Tumblr if you or someone you know is interested.
Hey everyone! The shopping service is back in business, but things will be very slow for the first week or two due to a great, big backlog of inquiries (over 60 inquiries to sort through - thank you!). I’ll do my best to get through things as fast as possible and respond to your messages. Thanks for understanding!
Coco was kind enough to write a detailed review on the service after I went to a book signing for her - http://hallilaul.tumblr.com/post/94085107891/tokyo-pirates-shopping-service-review-positive
Thank you so much! (^___^)You can also check out her cute tumblr here!
Hello everyone, and sorry to do this, but due to an overwhelming amount of current orders still being worked through, Tokyo Pirates shopping service’s hiatus will be extended until the 22nd August. Please bear in mind that I cannot always answer emails during the hiatus and any orders/inquiries you wish to make should be saved until after the hiatus date is over. If you send an email/message during hiatus, you may not receive a response unless your order/inquiry is sent again after hiatus (to prevent backlog). I apologize in advance for the inconvenience!
Thanks to everyone who has been inquiring about the Ma*rs items. It’s much appreciated even if no one buys. ^^
To those interested in lolita, I’ve put up some more things for sale, so feel free to check them out!
pimikochu said: That’s awful! Sorry to hear you had such a bad experience (especially around the Christmas holidays) ╥﹏╥
Aw, thanks. :) It’s just money though and I’m well over it (although the Batman part of me may have slightly vowed revenge…mwahaha!) It means I learned a good lesson though, so I’m not unhappy about it now. (^_^)
It can mean any of those depending on the situation. :) I still have a 24,000 yen bag’s worth of Ma*rs items from December 2013 after a customer simply stopped replying. Unfortunately, it has little re-sale value so I’m pretty much stuck with it.
That scam cleared me out while I was still getting on my feet financially which meant that I was living on Chinese bean sprouts over the Christmas holidays. As you can imagine I was pretty upset. However, that was when I was more of a beginner in the business and was my very first time being cheated. I try to think of it as a good life experience.
I learned the hard way from that, and that’s why now I only take payment after if the customer is already extremely trusted (and then only if it’s necessary) or if the item has a re-sale value equal to or greater than the item I’ve bought. I don’t have to worry as much about non-committed customers with certain items. :)
(p.s. If anyone wants cheap Ma*rs items or a stack of Ageha magazines let me know, haha! xD)
So, I’m taking advantage of hiatus to do a big clear-out of inventory. I’m selling new and used items - some are from my wardrobe, some were impulse purchases during sales, and some are cancelled orders. You can check out my sale items here- http://www.lacemarket.us/author/cloudlace/
But here are some pictures anyway!
(Magical Etoile special set - Harajuku store only as far as I know)
I’ll also be putting up some of the following rare items over the next few days (as well as a cancelled Cameo Window dress, more bags and accessories, etc.) if I can bring myself to part with them, so stay tuned. (Sorry but I won’t be accepting offers prior to making the lacemarket listings)
(^ still trying to decide if I can part with this one so not guaranteed)
I’m afraid that was on the 31st May. Cosmic series is long gone now. I think the ones people have reserved are due to come out in September, so you might see some pop up on auctions/in secondhand shops around then if people decide they don’t want them. That will probably be your best chance at this point. :)
We have a winner! ☆*･゜ﾟ･*\(^O^)/*･゜ﾟ･*☆
The winner was selected by tallying up the number of people who had entered and using a random number generator to keep things fair. It came out as lucky number 7, so pengupooh, you are the winner. Congratulations! I’ll message you so that you can collect your prize.
Thank you so much to everyone who entered! I have already found several things on people’s wishlists, so hopefully Collectstor will continue to be a useful tool for everyone. They’ve added a new ‘wishlist’ category now too due to demand. (^_^)
From 1st - 13th August, the Tokyo Pirates shopping service will be on hiatus. The cut off date for new orders will be the 28th July. Replies may also be a little slow for the next few days due to a slight overload. Service will be resumed as normal after the 13th.
Current orders will continue to be processed as usual, so please don’t worry if you have an event that occurs during that time or if you have a package that is still to arrive and be shipped. They will still be processed. Exceptions may also be made for lolita reserves or releases. Sorry for any inconvenience!
Hello! Haha, not at all. Thanks for the questions. I’ll do my best to answer! :D
1. Maybe 1-2 times a week. Mostly I just wear it on special occasions or when shopping. The rest of the time I’m more casual.
2. Alice and the Pirates Sentimental Circus JSK in black (the gold detailing is gorgeous)
3. Alice and the Pirates
4. It depends on the week. Sometimes only once, sometimes 3-4 times. It completely depends on the customers’ orders and whether they request it be bought online or in-store.
5. Yes, I usually go to Harajuku or Shinjuku for store releases.
6. I used to have lots of pets throughout my childhood (a dog, a cat, guinea pigs, hamsters, fish). They’ve all passed away, but I’d love a dog again. My dog was the kindest, sweetest-natured animal ever.
7. Erk, I haven’t taken a full day off in a long time, so I’m genuinely not sure anymore. It depends on my mood. Sometimes I like going to izakayas (Japanese pubs), sometimes clubbing, sometimes karaoke, sometimes staying in and having a movie night with flatmates. Right now I think what I crave most is going hiking in the mountains and just spending a whole day exploring, relaxing and refreshing. I plan to try in August if I can get all orders done. :D
8. I can’t say anything particularly strange has happened in-store. Maybe one of the more surreal experiences was when I was shopping in the Shinjuku store and a group of tourists walked by.
Now there are generally two kinds of tourists in lolita stores -
1) Those who are interested in/wear lolita and have come to buy things while they are in Japan. They’re usually by themselves, in couples or small groups.
2) Those who don’t know about lolita and marvel at the window displays, sometimes commenting on what the fashion might be about and how crazy the prices are. They usually come in couples, small groups or families.
Both of these types of tourists are pretty inconspicuous. They come, they look, they shop, etc., which of course is great.
This group was a different experience. You know how you tend to see a lot of Japanese people abroad in giant bus tour groups? You’re suddenly engulfed by a sea of people taking photos and shouting excitedly about the shape of a perfectly ordinary (to you) building. They move as one mind around a designated area and then disappear like smoke back onto the bus after about 10 minutes.
Imagine this, but instead of Japanese, it’s westerners crammed into a narrow corridor between tiny shops - people with cameras the size of their heads and wide eyes following a person with a flag who was loudly saying, “And this is LOWLEETAH. Lowleetah is a special fashion in Japan where they wear doll-like dresses…”
Literally everyone on the floor, who had been going about their business, froze and stared at them.The sales staff were giving each other side glances like, “What the f-?” The customers were glancing guiltily down at the purchases in their hands as if they’d been caught stealing candy.
I guess when you’re shopping/working in a shop, you don’t really consider the fact that you could be a tourist attraction. What had seemed normal one moment, now felt strangely bizarre. The tourists were freely gawking as they walked past as if we were exotic animals in a zoo.
A girl looking at the same accessory stand as me caught my eye after they left (we could hear the tour guide’s voice floating down the corridor) and we both started giggling.
tl:dr Tourists are funny in any country. I made a new friend that day. :P
9. Yes, I love, love, love my job. It’s stressful at times but always worth it. :)
I’m not too sure since I don’t own any of these myself and haven’t tried them on. As far as I can tell from the packaging they’re still just overknee and work the same way, but the material is thinner, so I guess you could count them as stockings, yes. (maybe someone else who owns a pair can confirm?)
They’re definitely ‘toeing’ the line (hah!…I’ll show myself out.).
I think I answered you by email already, but for the sake of others who are wondering I’ll answer here too. ^^
As far as I can tell it means they are out of stock in the online store, but they still have stock left in store branches and such. Once it says ‘sold out’ that generally means it is sold out everywhere including the stores. 'Order’ means they will order it from another store which means domestic shipping takes longer. It also means that by the time you make the order there’s a chance the item is already out of stock when they check for it, but in that case your order will simply be cancelled.
I noticed during the Fairy Marine Chiffon release it was 'sold out’ several times and then changed to 'order’ a couple days later. This is because they still had plenty left in store branches so they were able to transfer them to the online store if required. :)
Not in the least. Please feel free to email. :)
I think if it’s asked politely it should be okay. :) Every seller is different. I’ve done this for customers before and some sellers replied to me, some ignored me. As far as I know though, the only way to contact a seller after the listing has ended is through asking on another listing. If they don’t have any other listings up I don’t think it’s possible to contact them.
If anyone missed out on the fairy marine chiffon OP re-release today and you want one, let me know at contact@tokyopirates.com. I can still get all colours excluding sax which is sold out everywhere. They’re selling fast, so don’t wait long!
I visit only very occasionally. Usually, it’s plain-clothed people, tourists or cosplayers, but I’ve seen the occasional lolita there too, usually for wigs or shoes.
It’s hard to say in advance, but I reckon it’s going to be pretty popular. I don’t get so many inquiries for Baby or Pirates compared to Angelic Pretty, so when I do it’s a sign it will be popular. I’ve had several for this series. :)
No problem. ^^ If something is popular, I always recommend in-store. The Baby website crashes so much and it’s harder to compete with the whole country trying to buy online. With in-store I have almost always been able to get the item no matter how popular (e.g. Claudia and Midsummer Night’s Dream). Sometimes they do shuffles for extremely popular releases, but most of the time if you get there before the reserve time you’re pretty much guaranteed to get it. There’s never a 100% guarantee with either method, but chances in-store are much higher.
I’m afraid I don’t know how many for sure. At a guess (and this is purely guessing from how quickly they get sold out at popular releases), I’d say that each store branch gets around 15 - 30 of each colourway/style to sell in initial reserves. It’s very difficult to say though since I reckon they probably decrease or increase the amount depending on how popular they estimate it will be.
As for me, I can reserve one of each colourway and/or style. So, for example, I can reserve one ivory JSK and one black JSK of the same shape, or I can reserve one ivory JSK I and one ivory JSK II. Occasionally, I can employ a friend’s help if something is in great demand (though they don’t work as a service so their time is not guaranteed). :)
Hello! It was completely fine for me before, but yes I’ve noticed it’s been a bit buggy the past few days. I contacted Collectstor about it, and they informed me there was an attack on the server, but they’ve used the time to make updates to the website. I checked it, and it seems to be working smoothly now, so hopefully it will stay as smooth as it was before. ^^
Thanks for using the site. ^^ I’ve been browsing through people’s items and I’m excited to search for them! :D
Hello! I’m afraid this series is no longer available in AP. The only way to get it now is secondhand I believe, either through auction sites or if something appears in Closet Child. >.<
I will be using a new website for wishlists! Now anyone and everyone can make wishlists for free!
Just upload the items you want to the website and title the album “Lolita Wishlist”. Don’t forget to add the brand name (e.g. Angelic Pretty) and the name of the item (e.g. Musee du Chocolat One Piece in green). You can title it as whatever you like, but the more information you put, the more it gives me to go on when I’m out shopping. If I see anything you have on your wishlist in store, I’ll contact you to let you know (if more than one person has it, it will be first come, first served).
You can check the website out here - http://collectstor.com
It’s a place where you can also display your own collections, see other people’s collections, favourite other people’s items and potentially use for trading/selling. You’ll be able to see how many people want what you have which is pretty useful for closet cleaning. ;) You’ll also be able to describe/give reviews on your own items which will be helpful for others (similar to lolibrary but with more emphasis on you and your personal collection).
In short, I think this will be an excellent website for far more than wishlists and we should get the lolita community on here. (^_^) It’s not limited to lolitas of course! It can be used for anything you collect/want to collect - music, anime, fashion goods, specialist foods, etc.
It totally depends on the company and can vary a lot from 1 or 2 days to 2 weeks (even longer for some), but the average is around one week.
Hmm, I’m not entirely sure since everyone is different. Many appear to be very brand loyal, but some may use Bodyline for the odd accessory or wig. As for what they think, I couldn’t really say. :) My guess is there will be those who hate it and those who aren’t that bothered.
heartontheside was kind enough to write a review for the shopping service! :) You can check it out here along with her blog - http://heartontheside.tumblr.com/post/90943043258/shopping-service-tokyo-pirates-tokyo-pirates-is
Thank you! <3
deadmangalaxydays said: Hello! at 3:12 of your vid, the Meta cropped jacket, does it come with the matching skirt? Its called the Sheryl Nome set. Thanks!
