Sometime in January, I joined the group order for the BTS World Tour: Love Yourself in Japan merch from BTSN Shop. (BTSN Shop isn't really a shop, per se, it's a group order administration that helps BTS fans from all around the world get merch that they can't get locally, so they do mass orders for specific items/collections/etc.) I normally buy all my BTS/BT21 merch from Seoul via Mr. Jaewon, but as this is merch that is exclusive to the Japanese leg of the tour, it's only accessible through the merch booths at the Japan concerts (which people line up overnight for, 'cause the merch buying system in Japan is crazy) and possibly through the BTS Japan Official Fanclub (which you can only join if you live in Japan, anyway). So when I saw that BTSN Shop was taking orders for the Japanese tour merch, I decided to get some items that were exclusive to Japan.
BTS World Tour: Love Yourself in Japan Official Merch
BTS World Tour: Love Yourself in Japan Official Blanket
BTS World Tour: Love Yourself in Japan Official Bandana
The main reason I joined this group order to begin with was actually for the official tour zip-up hoodie. There was a zip-up hoodie that was an exclusive on the North American leg of the tour, but of course, it was one of the first items to sell out so I couldn't get it at either of the Hamilton or Newark dates I attended last year. It's the one tour item that I've wanted the most but have been unable to get. So I thought, "Here's my chance!" I don't know if the Japanese version is actually any different from the North American version, but BTSN Shop was ordering it for almost the same price as what they were selling for at the tour, so I didn't care. I also ordered the fleece blanket, the bandana, and the poster set (which is a different set to the one I got on the North American leg of the tour) 'cause I thought they'd be cute additions to my tour merch collection. Plus, I'd make my order worth the shipping price, you know?
BTS World Tour: Love Yourself in Japan Official Poster Set — Namjoon/RM
BTS World Tour: Love Yourself in Japan Official Poster Set — Yoongi/Suga
BTS World Tour: Love Yourself in Japan Official Poster Set — Jin
BTS World Tour: Love Yourself in Japan Official Poster Set — Hoseok/J-Hope
BTS World Tour: Love Yourself in Japan Official Poster Set — Jimin
BTS World Tour: Love Yourself in Japan Official Poster Set — Taehyung/V
BTS World Tour: Love Yourself in Japan Official Poster Set — Jungkook
Now, BTSN Shop sends you an invoice with payment instructions within a few days of receiving your order. I sent them my payment plus 5% service fees through PayPal within the hour, and sent them a screencap of the proof of payment. They sent a reply a week later saying they received my payment and that my order would be ready to ship about 3 to 4 weeks later, at which point I'd get a payment notice for the shipping fee. Three weeks goes by, and I get the payment notice from them, so I immediately send them the shipping fee and email them them the proof of payment. They send me a reply the same day letting me know they received the payment and will send me the tracking information soon. Now, BTSN Shop is notorious for taking a long time to acquire items and actually ship them out, so I knew it would be a while before I got my order. But I was okay with that, because I knew they'd need time to actually source products, especially if they're exclusive or limited edition.
But four weeks goes by and I still didn't hear from them, so I sent them an email inquiring when my items would be shipped. They replied saying that they checked with their supplier that day and that shipments would be arranged in the same day. (Coincidence that it was the same day that I emailed them, no?) Three days later, I get the tracking information from them. I email them back, confirming what is inside my package because I now have trust issues with them. It should be for four items. They email me back a day later saying that everything is in the package except for the zip-up hoodie. So I ask if the hoodie is going to be shipped separately. They then tell me that they're sorry they didn't inform me earlier, but the zip-up hoodie is not in stock so they'll refund me "soon." I was incredibly disappointed that I wouldn't be getting the hoodie, but actually way more pissed off that they failed to mention that to me after I paid the fucking shipping fee. So I email them back confirming that they'll be refunding me the cost of the hoodie plus 5% PayPal fees. They reply that they will, and to confirm my PayPal account email. I write them back with my PayPal info, and ask them when I can expect the refund to be in my account. It has been a week and they haven't gotten back to me yet. I wrote them another email again today. We'll see how long this takes.
The pros of BTSN Shop? They were able to get the majority of the items I ordered and they arrived in perfect condition. All items are 100% official BTS merch, so no worries about counterfeits or unofficial product. Actual shipping time from when I received the tracking number was four business days. But the cons? It took just over two months to actually receive my items. I couldn't get all the items I ordered. I did not receive any notification that they weren't able to get all of my items, even after I made a second payment for shipping (at which point they were already preparing my items to be shipped so they already knew that my order was missing one item). I have not heard back about my refund for the missing item, even after contacting them twice asking when I can expect money back into my PayPal account. So, conclusion: I will not be ordering from BTSN Shop again. I can overlook the insanely long time they take to prep orders to ship. But they are just way too disorganized and poor with communication.
(Apologies for turning this haul post into a long rant. I got angry and I'm supposed to keep my blood pressure steady.)
The main reason I joined this group order to begin with was actually for the official tour zip-up hoodie. There was a zip-up hoodie that was an exclusive on the North American leg of the tour, but of course, it was one of the first items to sell out so I couldn't get it at either of the Hamilton or Newark dates I attended last year. It's the one tour item that I've wanted the most but have been unable to get. So I thought, "Here's my chance!" I don't know if the Japanese version is actually any different from the North American version, but BTSN Shop was ordering it for almost the same price as what they were selling for at the tour, so I didn't care. I also ordered the fleece blanket, the bandana, and the poster set (which is a different set to the one I got on the North American leg of the tour) 'cause I thought they'd be cute additions to my tour merch collection. Plus, I'd make my order worth the shipping price, you know?
Now, BTSN Shop sends you an invoice with payment instructions within a few days of receiving your order. I sent them my payment plus 5% service fees through PayPal within the hour, and sent them a screencap of the proof of payment. They sent a reply a week later saying they received my payment and that my order would be ready to ship about 3 to 4 weeks later, at which point I'd get a payment notice for the shipping fee. Three weeks goes by, and I get the payment notice from them, so I immediately send them the shipping fee and email them them the proof of payment. They send me a reply the same day letting me know they received the payment and will send me the tracking information soon. Now, BTSN Shop is notorious for taking a long time to acquire items and actually ship them out, so I knew it would be a while before I got my order. But I was okay with that, because I knew they'd need time to actually source products, especially if they're exclusive or limited edition.
But four weeks goes by and I still didn't hear from them, so I sent them an email inquiring when my items would be shipped. They replied saying that they checked with their supplier that day and that shipments would be arranged in the same day. (Coincidence that it was the same day that I emailed them, no?) Three days later, I get the tracking information from them. I email them back, confirming what is inside my package because I now have trust issues with them. It should be for four items. They email me back a day later saying that everything is in the package except for the zip-up hoodie. So I ask if the hoodie is going to be shipped separately. They then tell me that they're sorry they didn't inform me earlier, but the zip-up hoodie is not in stock so they'll refund me "soon." I was incredibly disappointed that I wouldn't be getting the hoodie, but actually way more pissed off that they failed to mention that to me after I paid the fucking shipping fee. So I email them back confirming that they'll be refunding me the cost of the hoodie plus 5% PayPal fees. They reply that they will, and to confirm my PayPal account email. I write them back with my PayPal info, and ask them when I can expect the refund to be in my account. It has been a week and they haven't gotten back to me yet. I wrote them another email again today. We'll see how long this takes.
The pros of BTSN Shop? They were able to get the majority of the items I ordered and they arrived in perfect condition. All items are 100% official BTS merch, so no worries about counterfeits or unofficial product. Actual shipping time from when I received the tracking number was four business days. But the cons? It took just over two months to actually receive my items. I couldn't get all the items I ordered. I did not receive any notification that they weren't able to get all of my items, even after I made a second payment for shipping (at which point they were already preparing my items to be shipped so they already knew that my order was missing one item). I have not heard back about my refund for the missing item, even after contacting them twice asking when I can expect money back into my PayPal account. So, conclusion: I will not be ordering from BTSN Shop again. I can overlook the insanely long time they take to prep orders to ship. But they are just way too disorganized and poor with communication.
(Apologies for turning this haul post into a long rant. I got angry and I'm supposed to keep my blood pressure steady.)
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