Anime requires little or no introduction. For westerners, some may see it as the Japanese equivalent of animation. Like animation, Anime has produced many great shows and gave many great memories as well for all of us. I too has a strong passion for anime and their characters. Many people buy anime products online and the online anime industry has been booming as a result of this.
Now, I want to contribute a little tips on how to discern between a reputable seller that only sells quality, official merchandise and one that is only concerned with making money, to the extent of selling illegal, knock off, or so called bootleg, items. I will also be telling you some of the best places to go for anime figures and shows.
There will always be first timers who have no idea where to start in the online world of Anime. Hence, they are the perfect fodder for companies who are interested in ripping off people. Many first timers do not consider too much when they buy products online. They might just look at price and think they are getting the most bang of the buck out of anime figures and shows. These people are more likely to buy bootleg or counterfeit anime figures and shows, which in turns hurts the industry. The best way to prevent this is to educate the public that these sort of problems exist and tell or direct them to places that only sell legitimate products.
Here is one way in which you can detect counterfeit, bootleg products. First, find the Manufacturer's suggested retail price. Second, compare that price to the price of the anime product you are looking at. . If the price of the anime product is below the MSRP, then you can safely assume that product is a counterfeit one. You should check the website of the original manufacturer to find out what the MSRP is on a given item.
There is another way to detect counterfeit, bootleg products. Some of you might have guessed it because it is easy. Look at where the item is being made. If it is being made in China and Hong Kong, then very likely it is not an official merchandise.
Now, lets move on to how you can get your anime figures and shows at the best possible discounted prices. When you go to some of the most reputable and popular retailers website, they will always have items that are selling cheaper than its usual price. How do you look out for these items?
Firstly, you can preorder your figure before it is released. if the anime figure or show that you want to buy is very popular, chances are they will be snapped away as quickly as they come in. So, it is important that you are ahead of these people who are also looking for the same kind of items! You need to be on the constant lookout for the items you already have in your mind. You may even get a discount for ordering early, which is before the offical release date.
Secondly, you can wait for the items you have in mind to go on sale. However, this will only work for anime stuff that are not so popular, or gradually waning in popularity. For example, you are looking to buy a 'secondary' character from the shows. Like, usopp and franky from One Piece. You are likely to get what you want in a sale.
As most of you may well know, there are a lot of resale shops online. So where do you start if you are new? Well, one of the easiest way is to follow the crowd! There is a reason why customers continually comes back to a shop. That is because they must be REALLY good. The best places to get the best anime shows and figures would be some of the most popular resellers like Amazon, RightStuf, Play-Asia and AnimeNation. Jlist offers some exclusive items that cannot be found elsewhere.
There are a few American shops that offer quality anime figures but the selections are a bit limited. Kid Nemo, Robert's Anime Corner Store and the Big Bad toy Store are worth a look.
If you would like to get the most bang of the buck, you can go to [http://shopforanime.com] which provides constant updates on discounted and newly released items from only the best online anime stores over the internet.
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