Japan Doll Direct for DCS

Hello! I was asked to make a post about my experience using Japan Doll Direct to order a Dream Choice girl.

First, they are very friendly and easy to work with! The main contact person speaks English which helps. I messaged them via IG and got quoted the following:

$593 - Mochi Ashi MDD

$174 - PayPal/post box/JDD service/ Miss Tokyo Lady (JDD is a 2 person operation and Miss Tokyo Lady does the physical shopping)

$40-$80 shipping based on EMS, but because EMS is still suspended ATM, JDD will be using Yamato. 

They also offer layaway (I chose a 3 month plan), and was informed EMS may be running by the time I'm done with my plan so fees will go to which ever courier service is available at the time.

 

I then chose the following options for my girl -

Skin tone

Head

Makeup

Wig

Eye

Optional parts (such as elf ears)

If you're not familiar with how the Dream Choice system works, it's a private session you have to schedule at Doll Point in Akihabara. They provide a listing of all possible wigs, eyes, etc. including exclusive items only avaible through the Dream Choice system. Most of the available choices can be seen on the main Doll Point DD Dream Choice page.

https://www.volks.co.jp/dolpo/dreamchoice/?fbclid=IwAR0rWnhPiA-GhLyhia8JlApQLKxLQeKDMxXRGzbRhLesN7p9DaEL67a_cEc

I also followed @Nyx Whitestar's blog which proved very helpful in picking make-up styles.

https://dollfiestarchoice.blogspot.com/p/how.html

 

I sent my order in Wednesday and was informed my girl is finished and all put together today! (no pics yet). All in all the whole experience has been pleasant and seamless so far (save for possible shipping hang ups but we'll worry about that later). I definitely recommend them if you're thinking about getting a DC girl!

 

Edited August 2, 2020 by Akemi3167

Thank you for sharing your experience with them! I’m actually super interested to use them as well! I thought it would be way mord complicated than it actually is 🙀

i didn’t even know it’s possible to use layaway which is a big plus for them!

i just wonder when we use layaway it means they will send the doll after the last payment, right? 

Just now, blossom said:

Thank you for sharing your experience with them! I’m actually super interested to use them as well! I thought it would be way mord complicated than it actually is 🙀

i didn’t even know it’s possible to use layaway which is a big plus for them!

i just wonder when we use layaway it means they will send the doll after the last payment, right? 

That is correct which works out for us in the US since it gives EMS more time to be resolved.

 

I see~! Congratulations for successfully ordering your doll and i hope i can see her picture here when you finally get her 😊

Thank you! I will definitely share pics when she arrives! 

Thank you for sharing this! It is super informative. Can't wait to see your girl  

Ah, this is excellent information! Thanks very much for this, now I know their pricing rates and how to format my future order. The only thing I'm unsure of is makeup since M01 and M03 haven't been shown for DCH-20 yet, but other than that I'm good to go. Very much appreciated, and congrats on your new girl! 🥰

Edited August 3, 2020 by Selenae

 

28 minutes ago, Selenae said:

Ah, this is excellent information! Thanks very much for this, now I know their pricing rates and how to format my future order. The only thing I'm unsure of is makeup since M01 and M03 haven't been shown for DCH-20 yet, but other than that I'm good to go. Very much appreciated, and congrats on your new girl! 🥰

You're very welcome! I actually went with make up style M03 for DCH-21 in tan. I think she'll be pretty with a more, muted make up look.

On 8/3/2020 at 4:43 AM, Akemi3167 said:

 

You're very welcome! I actually went with make up style M03 for DCH-21 in tan. I think she'll be pretty with a more, muted make up look.

Do you know if the 3 ears can be ordered for DCH-21 or you can only buy 1 pair? any idea of the price for the extra ears if available?

Oh, thanks for sharing. I'm also super interested.

On 8/11/2020 at 7:13 AM, Satsuki_Yatohji said:

Do you know if the 3 ears can be ordered for DCH-21 or you can only buy 1 pair? any idea of the price for the extra ears if available?

That I'm not sure; you'd have to ask JDD to ask Doll Point directly if that's an option. 1 pair of ears is 1,500 yen.

You can only purchase 2 pairs of ears per order and only in the color of the doll you’re putting together.

I went with JDD as well, and I started the process about a day or two after mochi ashi came to Osaka. They were quite swamped with orders, but having gotten my girl just two days ago, I would say their communication was slow and lacking for the price in my experience. They were polite and apologetic but it took 10 days after paying them nearly $900 to get any sort of response about my doll. 
It will probably be better when the hype wears down though.

just thought I’d share my experience ^^;;

Doesn't this thread belong in "Vendor Links and Feedback"? 

I have a question regarding the certificates: When ordering through JDD, will the owner name be one of the staff, or will they let you put in yours instead?

On 8/18/2020 at 2:03 AM, Kitsune said:

Doesn't this thread belong in "Vendor Links and Feedback"? 

My apologies; I’m new to the forum so I wasn’t aware there was a specific area for this. MODS please move if need be. Thank you!

On 8/26/2020 at 7:32 AM, engelinvitro said:

I have a question regarding the certificates: When ordering through JDD, will the owner name be one of the staff, or will they let you put in yours instead?

I’m pretty sure they’ll put your name on the certificate but you can always message them to verify.

On 8/17/2020 at 3:07 AM, Kotone said:

You can only purchase 2 pairs of ears per order and only in the color of the doll you’re putting together.

I went with JDD as well, and I started the process about a day or two after mochi ashi came to Osaka. They were quite swamped with orders, but having gotten my girl just two days ago, I would say their communication was slow and lacking for the price in my experience. They were polite and apologetic but it took 10 days after paying them nearly $900 to get any sort of response about my doll. 
It will probably be better when the hype wears down though.

just thought I’d share my experience ^^;;

Thanks for sharing! The main contact person has mentioned they are getting very busy mainly with the Mochi Ashi release but they’ve been really good about communication with me. I even added a few things to my layaway from the Dollpa releases which they were able to add and have responded to any messages I’ve sent within a day so far.

I got back to JDD about the certificate and they said it would be under one of the staff members's names (I'm assuming Miss Tokyo Lady). It doesn't really bother me, but this information might be of interest to others. 

Here are some things I'd like to add regarding the ordering process:

• They'll send you an invoice through Paypal. Contrary to their quotes, they will bill you in JPY. Depending on Paypal's exchange rate, you could be paying more or less after conversion.
• There is a $16.66 monthly fee if you choose to pay through layaway. The lengths are 3, 6, and 8 months with a $200 deposit required upfront. I asked for only a month/4 week payment plan so the fee was waived for me, though I paid 50% of my balance instead of $200.
• Layaway isn't always available. You have to ask them first if any spots have opened. Mine was also situational because they were fully booked for August, and since I didn't opt for a long payment plan they were happy to accept my order.

Edited September 3, 2020 by engelinvitro

Congratulations on your MDD! I used Niya Proxy Service myself, but they're also going to take a break starting with October until next year, so it's nice to know that other options exist!

Also, regardless of the proxy the staff's name will always be on the certificate. It's a rule at the actual Doll Point store, but if it bothers me I'll just paint my name in when my boy arrives, haha.