What does the name "Tokaido" mean?
The name "Tokaido" is composed of three kanji (Chinese characters) which mean "East", "Sea" and a suffix meaning "Shop". Together, the name means "Eastern Sea Shop". As the founder of Tokaido was originally from the area of Japan near what is called the "Eastern Sea," he named the shop Tokaido in honor of his homeland. More information about Tokaido history .
Where is Tokaido located?
The primary Tokaido sales shop is located in downtown Tokyo. If you are planning a visit to Tokyo and would like the address to stop by, please let us know. There are other branch offices in other major cities in Japan.
For uniforms, if I think I am midway between two sizes, should I order a larger size or smaller size?
As noted above, we suggest you send an email, asking for our opinion. But if you are fairly sure and are just trying to decide between size 5 and 5.5, for example, we usually recommend getting the larger size. If it is a little too large, you can shrink it by washing in hot water and putting in a dryer. You can repeat this process to shrink further. If it is much too large, you can have it altered by a tailor locally. If it is too small, there is not much you can do to alter it to make it fit you better.
Can I pay by wire transfer or money order/check?
Yes. But we prefer to limit transactions to just payment by credit card or by other forms of payment accepted by PayPal. Please see their website (www.paypal.com) for more information. We can accept checks (cashier's check or other official bank check preferred). But we must wait until funds clear before we can enter your order into the work queue. If exchange rates move against us within the time we are waiting for the funds to clear, we may need to ask for additional payment, something neither we nor you would like to have to deal with. The same problems exist when dealing with wire transfers and Western Union payments. We prefer to process all payments through PayPal. But if, for some reason, you find this impossible, please let us know and we can discuss your options. PayPal does not allow payments from all countries and we would like to help you to do business with us. So please do send email to discuss your options if you cannot pay via PayPal.
Are there any additional charges for the transaction?
Your credit card may charge you extra for the transaction. But we do not charge you anything in additional to what you are quoted by us. Please contact your credit card company if you would like more details on your specific situation.
Are any taxes charged for the transaction?
Tax is incurred on the transaction in Japan at the rate of 5%. This charge is included in the quoted price and is not added onto your bill separately. Tokaido pays this local tax on your behalf. There are cases where an import tax is incurred once the merchandise arrives in your country. In most countries, for orders less than a value of about $500 (varies greatly depending on country), there is no import tax. Please check with your local customs office for more information. Internet-based sales are currently being reviewed by the relevant authorities as possibly requiring sales tax payments sometime in the future. At the present time, we are not charging sales tax for these internet transactions but understand that we may be required to do so sometime in the future.
Why is shipping so expensive?
Please remember: you are ordering from Japan, one of the most expensive countries in the world for almost everything. In addition to the high shipping charges at the post office and express mail services, a portion goes toward the personalized handling service we provide, as well as the packaging material. Orders are hand-packaged by Tokaido in a coordinated effort with Tokaido's factory personnel and individually mailed out as soon as possible after completion of the order. Considering what is involved, we do not consider this very expensive.
Please note that you may incur additional costs locally to receive your order, including import tax, etc. We are not responsible for these additional costs. Please check with your local post office if you have any questions.
What colors of stitching are available for the belt embroidery?
We offer a variety of colors; almost any color imaginable. The most common are our standard amber (some people say it looks like orange), red, metallic gold and metallic silver. Other colors seen have been green, gray and purple, among others. We can even embroider in black, although it seems somewhat impractical.
Can I get my belt or uniform with no label? Can I get just a label, separately?
No. This is simply a business decision. Tokaido has a reputation to maintain. There are already more than enough fake Tokaido products being passed off as the genuine article. If we sell these products without a label, someone could put a label of another manufacturer where the Tokaido label should be, in an attempt to pass off the higher quality merchandise as their own. For the same reason, we will not send out a label by itself. We do not want that label attached to a lower quality product, as this may hurt Tokaido's reputation.
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