SB

In the past, a lot of people asked me where and how I got all that stuff, and I usually replied that you just need to have a pinch of luck. Which is true!

But in fact, for some things, it's pretty easy to get them, if you know where. And if you have some cash. There are mainly two ways of stocking up on shiny treasures: 1. Go to Japan and buy things directly in a shop 2. Buy things online

I guess for most, option two would be the preferred one (for lack of free plane tickets to Japan...). Since I'm not travelling to Japan every other day myself, I actually prefer option two as well.

Where to buy things CDs / DVDs Whether you go for Option 1 or Option 2, I always recommend buying things from Visual kei stores or CD Japan (yes, YesAsia does have free shipping sometimes, but I've heard a lot of bad things about it, too). A good option is sometimes also Livejournal. People are usually quite reasonable with their prices and also the diversity is quite good (especially for goods, too). For new items, I really recommend CD Japan if you do online shopping. If you are in Japan, go to a VK store like Jishubanclub or Like an Edison.

Extras / tokuten At a lot of stores you can get nice little extras like photosets or clear files or posters with your purchase. Gazette are always releasing a list of these extras some days before the release date of a new CD/DVD. Check this list if you care about what extras you get.

Goods Best would be to get them directly at a live! But not everyone has the chance to go to one, so your options include: - Nice people who offer shopping services when they go to a live / friends who offer you to buy you something - JapanDiscoveries I guess (never bought anything there but some plecs) - Japanese auction sites - Second hand stores - Livejournal I think goods are generally harder to obtain (especially old ones), and I'm not yet into goods collecting as much as I'm into CD/DVD/VHS collecting. So I'll mainly focus on CDs and DVDs here (also not really including magazines, official calendars etc.)

Option 1

So let's point out what you need first:

- Cash - A credit card, or even better: Paypal, or even better: Paypal with an attached credit card - Internet connection (oh, I see you have that one, otherwise you probably wouldn't be reading this right now...) - A mailbox outside of your house/flat - Patience (lots thereof) - Places to buy stuff from!

Congrats! Now you're all ready!! Let the fun begin!

1. What do you want to buy? Before you jump into a crazy shopping spree, stop, and think about what you really, reeeally want to buy. Collecting Gazette merch is a very pricey hobby, there's no cheap workaround, unfortunately. Therefore, think about which CD you really love, what songs are on there, which era is it from, do you particularly like the design of that DVD or minialbum? In the beginning, I only bought the things I really wanted. My urge to collect everything increased with the amount of things that I already bought. But unless you're really really lucky, you won't be able to buy everything in one go anyways, so keep the objects of your desire that you can't yet get as a motivation in the back of your mind.

2. Make a list Make a list of the things that Gazette has already released. I got permission by someone to copy a list they have made, but I altered it according to my own tastes. It's probably better if you make such a list for yourself, so that you'll see what overwhelming amount of released objects there actually is! Also, use this list to tick off the items you've already got. Having an overview over your collection is everything (you don't necessarily want to end up with two identical copies of a CD).

3. Item numbers This is THE most important thing for a collector. These numbers (usually found on the back of a CD or DVD) will decide whether you will really hold the right version of that copy in your hands or not.

This is the part I spend most of my time on when buying something. Remember that Gazette usually do have limited and regular editions, but also reissues (second presses), and European versions. (the chances of getting a European version in a Japanese store are pretty small, but I'm still mentioning it here).

Whenever you spot an item you want to buy, check the number that the seller has listed! Then go to your list, which hopefully contains this number, and look for the item with that number. Is it really the limited first press edition? Or is it the number of a reissue? Sure, maybe you actually want that reissue, but probably you will start with collecting first press stuff. In that case, getting a reissue thinking it's a first press would be really disappointing.

What an item number looks like: SRCL-8358, or if it's a limited edition with multiple CDs and/or DVDs for example: SRCL-8355~8357 (these are Sony item Numbers, by the way. In the past, Gazette had several versions of item numbers, depending on what label or whatever released them.

An Example of First press limited, regular and reissue: Cockayne Soup First press, limited edition (digipack): PSTA-0036 First press, regular edition: PSTA-0036 Reissue: KICS-40018 The first three minialbums (and gama) had these beautiful digipacks! If this is statetd, it's enough to know that they're limited editions. (Btw, the item number of gama regular edition on the OHP is actually wrong because it's the one of the reissue that was released later in November)

Yeah, I'm pretty much obsessed over item numbers.. *sweat*

4. Item condition Usually you won't see the object of your desire in detail before buying it, so you just have to take what you get, I guess. Some online stores describe the conditions though. Therefore, spend a little more money on a less damaged item, it will be worth it.

5. Stay away from ebay I don't like buying items off of ebay. Just recently I went there to look around for a bit, and I only saw overpriced stuff from people who didn't really know about current item prices etc. You really don't know what you will end up with, and honestly, you won't need ebay to get everything you want. Of course, there might be treasures that I have never found (or rather never cared to find there, I guess), but usually I'm always suspicious of this place. If you absolutely want to buy from ebay, always check the seller's reputation, check their description of the item, look out for the item number!

6. Customs Keep in mind that if you buy a CD for 17'000￥, you will probably have to pay customs. Take this into account if you want to buy it. Same goes for large orders over 10'000￥, but it really depends on your country. I decided to only buy these very expensive CDs when I go to Japan in the future. In the past, some shops offered to write a lower price on the parcel slip in order to avoid customs, but Japanese customs have gotten stricter recently, so professional businesses can't do this anymore.

7. Patience Patience you must have my young padawan (sorry couldn't resist...). Sometimes it will take a long time until the object of your desire appears in a shop. Maybe it's there, but you don't have some spare money left to just jump into the purchase. Don't despair. It will appear again someday. I recently bought a VHS that I've probably already wanted when I started listening to Gazette and didn't know that that video actually came from a VHS.. and just magically appeard somewhere on the internet...

8. Shipping Some shops only ship by EMS by default. This will be more expensive, but also the most secure and the fastest way of shipping. If you purchase that 17'000￥ CD, make sure it will be shipped by EMS (and prepare for customs). Magazines will be generally quite heavy. If you buy two magazines, shipping will automatically be more expensive than you thought. It still depends on where you live though. There's also a 2kg limit for anything but EMS. So if you buy a lot of stuff at once, you won't have any other option but to go with EMS.

9. Japanese auction sites Gold mines, but I only ever used an auction site once. Mainly because they're not open to people overseas, so you will have to use a shopping service, thus everything you buy there will be automatically more expensive. Think carefully before you venture to go this way. Choose your shopping service wisely. Some have horrendous service fees. You will also have to pay the shipping fees from the seller to your shopping service. I think auction sites are a good place for people who already have everything they wanted and now want to look out for some stuff you won't find regularly at other places. (I'm not in this position yet orz)

Have I missed anything? I hope not! I think there's not much more to keep in mind than this.

Option 2

So, something great has happened and you are actually going to Japan (maybe for the very first time)!! Of course you are planning on buying EVERYTHING you can... but take your time to think about it in a calm moment. I've only ever been to Kyoto and Tokyo, so my experiences are 95% Tokyo based... however, the first item I ever bought on Japanese ground was the NAMELESS LIBERTY SIX GUNS Limited Edition DVD in a normal CD store in Kyoto, because it had just been released and I rushed to the first store I spotted and just bought it faster than a squirrel on drugs in my state of euphoria... (don't do this if you want nice extras with your purchase, because Visual kei stores usually have more to offer than general CD shops! I was just young and inexperienced back then... I saw later in a Tokyo VK store that they had the same DVD with a bottle bag and other nice stuff as an extra and I was really sad D:)

Well anyways, let's move on! Again, what you will need: - A plane ticket - Hotel room or some kind of place to stay in order to store your loot - Lots of cash and/or a credit card - One or two huge suitcases - Your shopping list

1. Make a list of the things you want to buy Assuming you will not visit Japan very soon again after you go back home (because such a trip will suck you dry), you should know what you want to buy beforehand. Write down your item numbers. Do it on paper because you will take your list with you to the store (like some sort of luxury grocery shopping list). This way you can make sure that you will not forget anything important. Write down an item even if you think they might not have it anyway. Maybe they will! You could also write down for each item how much you assume it will cost and have an overview over how much money you are going to spend.

2. Plan out how to get everything back to your home country You will have one, maybe two suitcases with you on your trip. Probably also some hand luggage. This is all you have. Your suitcases WILL get heavy if you fill them with CDs. Last time I went I had to pay over 10'000￥ at the airport for my overweight suitcase because I stuffed it with CDs etc. orz During the week before I went home, I also sent a giant EMS parcel back home to my parents, which cost about the same amount of money... Protip: just go with an empty suitcase, only take the most important stuff with you (daily necessities like a tooth brush, underwear etc.)! You will probably buy some cool new clothes anyway... and you need space for merch! Remember, it could take years until you go to Japan again! It will be worth it.

3. Take a credit card with you I've never experienced going to a VK store and not being able to pay with credit card. It's much safer to bring a credit card instead of a huge amount of cash. You can always call the credit card hotline if your card gets stolen or anything else happens with it, in order to block it. If you need to get cash from an ATM, you can also do it with your card, but there will be quite high transaction fees, so only do this once or twice! Also, save up enough money beforehand. Do not overuse your credit card. The trip will be much more enjoyable if you know you're not using any money that wasn't supposed for something else. And honestly... being debt-free >>>> merch, being able to buy food >>>> merch.

4. Make sure the place where you stay at is safe Yeah, I guess this shouldn't really be a problem... last time I stayed at a hostel in Ikebukuro and I was actually sleeping in a dorm with other people (it was the cheapest option for me, so, more money to spend on fun things :D) and I never had to worry about my stuff. A single room is still the best option though, of course. Try to not stash everything on the floor though, because if you step on something, it's over...

5. Quality You are now in the awesome position to actually take the item into your very own hands and look at it closely before you buy it. Take this chance! Do not buy the very first copy of an item you see only because you think it's super rare and you will not get it anywhere else. I bought a copy of Verwelktes Gedicht with a cover in a horrible state... it has scratches all over and looks generally not really like it has seen many good days... and I still paid a lot for it, because I thought it's OMG SO RARE. Only to find it at another store some days later... in a much better condition... for almost the same price...

6. Know I stopped writing here yesterday because I had to catch the bus and only wrote "Know" as a title without finishing the line.

Now I don't remember what you should have to know...

7. If your budget is not so large Well, looking at that guide it seems that I'm only writing from a perspective of someone with an infinite source of money... but that's not true. The trip itself will be very expensive, and I'd really like to point out that you should enjoy it above anything else. Go to lives, buy other nice things, buy souverniers, go to an okonomiyaki restaurant, do some touristy stuff if you like these kinds of things, visit a shrine or a temple on New Year's Day, or take a look at the blooming sakura in spring. If you don't have enough money to go with an empty suitcase and buy new clothes over there, by all means, bring some clothes with you! If your budget doesn't allow you to stuff your whole suitcase full with CDs and goods, only buy the things you really cherish and that you've always wanted. Keep this in mind: even rare things will probably never disappear completely from the shops. There will always be another opportunity someday or another to buy your desired item. In the end you don't just go there in order to increase your collection. (This should really go without saying, but I've actually already caught myself worrying about how many CDs I'll be able to bring back home from Japan and this really isn't what it should be about...)

8. If you have a really large budget... Do whatever you want 8D