Celga vs. Rinkya

i've used celga for a few years now, and they are very nice people, and very fast with emails! if there is an auction that you want to bid on, and it ends in less than 24 hours, they are my recommendation. just make sure you are very thorough with the bidding details (always!). ^_^

I've used Celga since they first started out, and IM'd with Keigo on numerous occasions. I think he's a actually a pretty nice guy, though perhaps a little adverse to conflict. I've never really had any issues with them, they've always shipped out the cels to me when I requested them. Service wise, Emily handles their English corrospondance now, while Keigo handles the Japanese side. While I personally miss speaking to Keigo, I have to admit she's very capable, and responds quickly to my concerns. She even emails me back when I goof up and put too many extra zero's in my bids o_0

One thing I would say is that when you do bid using Celga, you really have to bid much higher then you normally would have to on EBay. This in turn, makes you put in a higher deposit to guarantee the bid (I haven't gone to their gold account yet). This is all fine and good if you have a lot of disposable income, but for most people redirecting this much income for a single cel that you may or may not win isn't desireable.

After you've won, you need to request a refund for the remaining deposit. Alternatively, you could have it sit there for the next time you bid (which is what I usually do).

I just recently opened up a Rinka account, not because I was unhappy with Celga, but because I wanted to a little more control on what I wanted to bid on. Using Celga, I felt I had to try and give at least a 24 hour notice to get the auction I wanted to bid on. I know the above poster mentioned that he was able to get in bids much later, but I usually feel uncomfortable when things are that close to the auction end time. With Rinka, I'm hoping I can put the bid in later, since I'm not always able to check the auctions on a daily basis.

Bottom line, I still recommend Celga.

Hope this helps,
- SilentBidder

I have never used Celga, so, I can't speak for their services.

I have used Rinkya in the past. While I appreciate receiving extra cel bags, the fact that I had to wait a month to the day to receive the items was not pleasant. While I understand that this may be due to the seller and their delayed shipping method, a part of it made me wonder why there was such a delay with receiving it at the wherehouse.

What I do not like about Rinkya's services is that they charge far too much for commission. Yes, I appreciate the service, but a $7.00 fee for every 1000 yen difference in an internal bidwar is a bit much(especially when SMJ charges about $2.00 for the same scenario). The last item I bought with Rinkya, due to commission and bidwar fees, cost me 2x as much as the original item had ended for on YJ.

I prefer ShoppingMallJapan over all the services that I have used. I have had over 300 transactions with them with only 2 incidents which were handled quite well. The service, for the most part, is much faster than with Rinkya, the fees are substantially less and I get the luxury of holding items there for 60+ days without being charged for it.

The generally criticism I hear towards SMJ is that you actually have to come up with the cash first to allow yourself to bid. I really don't mind this - If I can't afford to put down a deposit, then I probably shouldn't be bidding on higher end goodies.

I for one do not mind coming up with the funds to raise the bidding limit on my SMJ account. It is only reasonable to have the actual monies on hand to pay for what one bids on.

As for Celga and the previous oceanfrr post detailing the correspondence with Keigo, I have the following thoughts...

Basically Celga is bearable if you a) don't expect much in customer service, b)don't need to combine items, c) do not ask sellers any questions or seek clarification, and d) just like to bid on your own and pay. However, considering these two facts: 1) 100% of the items patrons use Celgas service for is in Japanese and/or actually located within Japan, and 2) most of the patrons are non-Japanese readers, dare I say, English speakers, we are bound to request assistance! Keigo, this IS what a real deputy service does, assist potential buyers to deal w/sellers.

IMO all deputy services exist primarily b/c they provide a service to customers and not an actual physical product the way stores do. This distinction is something important to keep in mind considering the "services" or lack thereof. Moreover, the deputy service sales are based mainly on repeat customers and their continued use of the deputy service.

Specifically for Celga, if they want to grow and gain new customers without alienating the old ones and remotely improving their tarnish reputation, they need to find a better compromise/balance regarding their "services". One of Celgas largest and most profitable customer base are the cel buyers. All of these items in particular are used, old and unless the seller posts excellent scans and precise descriptions, buyers will ask questions. However, since Celga does not provide quality customer service, the reality of how customers actually prepare to bid is something that completely goes against their "business practice". Sadly, Celga (Keigo in particular) just does NOT understand how a successful deputy service business model really works, customer service counts more than he realizes.

Although there are cultural differences regarding business in Asia v. Western practices, the bottomline is still the sale. No sale equals no bloody monies, so on that note, it all comes down to how much of a compromise the business is willing to make in the attempts to close the deal. I've dealt w/many Asian businesses that will practically roll out the red carpet, while others just thumb their noses at you and tell you to leave if you ask questions. Sure it varies with the different sized businesses but as I said before, the ultimate goal regardless of culture, geography, and size of business is the point of sale. I've learned over the years that some people are just more savvy and know how to deal with people better, which often leads to the sale.

'Nuff said, I hope someone found this information useful.

Well, I for one have had no "bad" experiences with Celga. I have used them for years and have enjoyed every transaction. I have asked questions about auctions before and I have always received a response. One time a wishlist cel of mine was cancelled early and Emily wrote me and said that it was relisted in another section. Out of all of their customers she remembered me and the cel that I wanted. Also, I had mentioned to Keigo that my Grandmother was very sick and that she was in the hosptial. He sent me money to buy her flowers! These examples are what EXCELLENT customer service is all about. I am and have always been very pleased with Celga (Keigo, Emily and Hyla) They have always done a terriffic job.

-Matt