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BIG NEWS: Japan Crate is Relocating to Tokyo!

Konnichiwa and Happy New Year!!

Two years ago Japan Crate was started to share Japanese culture through candy. We’ve gone from packing crates in our apartment, to an international company with an amazing community of over 100,000 people in over 50 countries.

One thing will never change, and that’s our passion for bringing you the best experience possible.

On that note, we have an exciting announcement to make…

We’re moving our headquarters & operations to Tokyo. 

japan crate
Starting in February, all crates will be fulfilled from Japan.  

What does this mean for you?

We’re currently based in San Francisco, but being outside of Japan has limitations. Shipping can be unreliable due to ocean freight delivery, we’re limited in terms of curation because of production time, and international shipping is expensive for subscribers outside the US.

Moving to Japan solves those problems while bringing many new perks.

Better Curation, Better Products

This move means you get more of the items you’ve been asking for. 

We now have access to the latest products & trends before they even hit the shelves of Japan.  This way you can experience new products at the same time as Japan.  This is true for all crates.  Below is a sneak peek of what’s to come in February’s crates.

february sneak peek

More Reliable Shipping + FREE International Shipping

Shipments are changing from USPS/Newgistics/Asendia to Japan Post—one of the most reliable postal services in the world.  This means faster shipping times, improved courier reliability and crates arrive in better condition. Best of all, international shipping will be 100% free for all subscribers regardless of country, effective immediately.

In the very near future we’ll also be transitioning shipping cycles to weekly instead of monthly so you receive your crates even faster.

One important change – in order to keep shipping free while increasing the quality of products, crates will no longer include tracking numbers. Rest assured crates will still arrive safely!

Click here to learn more about the future shipping schedule.

Better Social & Digital Content and Prizes

One of the biggest requests we get from our community is for more Japanese content. Japan Crate will soon be your go-to source for all things Japan from news to trends, releases and more. You’ll feel like you’ve been transported to Japan!

You’ll also have the chance to win better prizes. Tell us what you’re most interested in and we’ll find it for you! Whether it’s newly released plushies, figures, snacks, Japan Exclusive goodies and everything in between.

Other improvements

We’re also busy working on more improvements to Japan Crate that we’ll be releasing during the next few weeks/months.  Get ready for a redesigned website, improved online store, and the release of the long awaited Loyalty/Referral program. Thank you so much for your patience with the loyalty program development. We know it’s long overdue, but we want to make sure that the software is 100% perfect before release.

This relocation to Tokyo will improve Japan Crate’s offering across the board, and help us deliver on our mission to bring the experience of Japan to you every month. We’re so excited to share even more of Japan with you, and to give you better access to hard to find goodies you’ve been unable to get until now. Feel free to comment below with any questions, items or places you’d like to see!!

Thanks for being the best family we could ask for, we love you guys.

-The Japan Crate team

 

 

86 Comments

  2. Very excited about the free international shipping! I live in Canada and the shipping currently is really expensive compared to the U.S.

  3. This is exciting news and should provide a wider range of products found in each crate type.

    Regarding your food crates though, please make sure you take extra measures to avoid customs issues.

    I have never had an issue with customs and your crates but I always put that towards you being based out of the US. I am also located in the US. Other boxes of this variety though have had numerous issues with customs, even when they fully comply with customs policies. (Meat products for example, BBQ flavor stuff usually gets taken by customs…)

  5. Congratulations on the huge success! I look forward to the exciting items you all work so hard to select for everyone. And thank you for everything the past year or so.

    Wishing you much luck and success in this new venture.

  7. I am so excited for you guys!! I imagine it’s a dream come true♡♡ I can’t wait to see with the future brings.

  9. Hello, do you have any plans to start shipping to Brazil as well? Thank You very much.

    1. Hello! We want everyone to be able to taste and experience a bit of Japan and hope to ship to Brazil soon! We’ll make sure to let the community know if new countries are added to the shipping list 🙂

  10. But… crates already don’t have tracking numbers. At least, Kira Kira doesn’t. 🙁

  17. Question. What do you mean precisely by ‘weekly’ rather than ‘monthly’? And will this affect subscription prices?
    Thanks in advance!

    1. Hello! The subscription prices will remain the same!! The rolling shipments system will divide our shipments into three different shipping periods that will correspond with your renewal date, providing you with a more consistent shipping schedule! You can learn more about the shipping in our FAQ here: https://help.japancrate.com/hc/en-us 🙂

  18. That’s awesome 😀 I just have one question, will those of us who have multi month subscriptions still get the crates for the remaiming months? And will the prices change?

  21. It completely makes sense. I am so happy that you guys are able to do this for yourselves and for us. Thank you!

  23. Congratulations! I hate losing tracking number ability, but happy to try newer products😇

  24. Will i still get loyalty points if i skip a renewal? I subscribe to almost all the crates but sometimes i have to skip renewal periods for budgeting reasons. :/ And since you’re shipping every crate from Japan will that lower or raise the overall prices of each crate subscription?
    I am super excited about this change. It should boost the quality of each crate tremendously. I’m especially looking forward to the new Kira Kira stuff. If you guys did a “fashion crate” of some select clothes that are trending in Japan that would be way cool! It is really expensive to buy internationally the cute fashions going viral in Japan right now.

  25. Would love to taste those special favorites from KitKat. Especially the Red Bean favorite. I picked those one time at Japan. It taste so YUMMY !!

  26. omg!. i can’t wait to see all the new stuff and can’t wait for next months doki doki crate now, i can’t get a crate every month but the ones i do get give me something to look forward to when my epilepsy gets bad i know that it will be coming to cheer me up soon and now that you are making them better just makes me look forward to them even more. keep up the great work and good luck!!!!!

  27. Excitement!!! Best of luck on the new ventures. I’m so very thrilled to see what you guys pull out of your hat!

  28. Hi,

    I recently (in the past 4 weeks) subscribed for 6 months of Japan Crate, and because I live in Canada, I paid shipping costs. Does this mean I get a refund or an exchange for more crates because I paid for something that is now free?

    Thanks in advance!

  29. It would be amazing if you guys can give small tours of your Tokyo facility for those who are visiting Japan. 🙂

  31. This is so exciting! I’m buying the little red box for my sister each month! She’s obsessed:) I know she is trying to learn Japanese and she’s doing an amazing job, is there anyway you could put like random phrases or something so that she and others could learn more of the language?!:)

    1. Hey Aubrey! We currently include 3 phrases in our monthly manga-zines to teach Japanese. We’ll definitely be doing something exciting around that subject soon!

  32. The list of countries will not be widened? I would like to subscribe to the Kira Kira Box but I live in Hungary T.T

    1. Hello! We are unable to ship to certain countries due to a number of factors. We may allow shipments to countries that we currently do not in the future by including insurance. We’ll keep you updated!

  33. Any way we might be able to get some of those sweet Tenyo puzzles in our doki doki crates in the future? Or I’d love to see a cute puzzle in general in our crates.

  34. Hi! I’m so glad that you ‘re making this move! I think it will work out for the better all around. If I could make a request? You add lots of nice ramen related stuff in your Umai boxes ( chopsticks, chopstick rests ect.) In one of your Umai boxes could you add one of those ramen cup lid holders? I’m not sure what they’re called but you put them on top of your cup ramen till they’re done and then you just take the little character off them and peel the paper cover off the ramen. they’re sometimes amine figures other types of characters. Thanks for your time. 🙂

  36. I’m so jealous you guys are relocating to tokyo! But the placement was perfect timing because i was thinking of getting another crate for my B-day next month and I’m glad that starting next month the new crates will only get better!
    As for questions about future crates do you think maybe you could start including a random manga in the crates? Please and thanks and good luck in japan!

  37. This is so awesome! You guys really have a great product! What does this mean for people who have already paid the shipping costs in a yearly subscription? Whatever the answer, keep living the dream!

  38. My only complaint with your subscriptions was the shipping company that you used. Now I’m thinking of resubscribing and trying a new crate, Doki Doki. I’m really excited about this change!

  39. I’m super excited for this! 😀 Congratulations and good luck. I can’t wait for this to launch.

  41. Question, will the free international shipping apply to crate subscriptions only or also for orders placed on the Japan Crate Store?

  42. So awesome for you guys! Just make sure you keep that super-reliable customer service too – a fellow named Rudy was unbelievably helpful in making sure my first crate made its second trip after the first one somehow got wrecked in shipping! Loyal customer right here, for sure, and good luck!

  43. Free shipping, means more goodies for me right?!?!?!? Also, I am guessing it will take longer to receive my crate?
    I am happy to hear the news.

  44. Please tell me you guys are hiring. I’m willing to relocate to Japan to help Japan Crate keep custermers happy with what is shipped.

  46. I still kinda want the tracking number. It helps me know where the crate is and how long it will take to get here but oh well. Have fun in Tokyo! I’ll be going to Tokyo myself someday. Thanks for the information! ^-^

  48. Congratulations! Question – will deliveries in the United States require a recipient signature, as do many shipments via Japan Post? This is very inconvenient and would impact our willingness to continue with what is otherwise a fun and awesome subscription.

  49. Glad you all are doing well! Can’t wait to try the new snacks!

    You said you are removing tracking numbers due to cost. I don’t know how much it costs with vs. without, but would creating a subscription tier that includes tracking numbers be an option if enough subscribers are interested?

    Our packages are delivered in outdoor postal boxes and it gets rather hot in summer and well below freezing in winter and I’d rather not open the box to find melted chocolates or frozen/exploded drinks!

    Thanks for your service!

  54. Is there any refund if the cost of my 3-month subscription included shipping cost from US to Singapore?

  55. I understand that your moving I just got an email this morning stating that due to customs my box is delayed….so instead of moving in February you moved already? I was wondering since I paid for a box to arrive on time and it’s going to be late can you put extra items in my box. Please and thank you.

  57. Congratulations on the move! It must be very exiting! Thank you so much for your service and can’t wait to see what’s in store for the future! Take lots of pictures of your adventures~

  60. I would love to see more things related to Japanese shrines, they interest me and I have always wanted to have something like that in my home. Keep up the great work!