I bought Gold Star Mewtwo from Laurie Honpo and Stormfront Charizard from C-Labo Akihabara. Both were labeled "damaged." Both were in excellent condition by Western standards.
The Mewtwo came from a 4.5/5 rated shop. The Charizard from a C-Labo with great damaged card prices.
Always inspect "damaged" cards yourself.
Sunrise is an underrated chain for Pokémon card collectors in Japan.
Osaka (4.75/5): Phenomenal prices. Found my Latias Gold Star. Ask about discounts on big cards.
Fukuoka (4.25/5): Free pack for a Google review.
Hiroshima (4/5): Mega Dream boxes for cheap.
The key: always check their damaged card showcases first. That's where the real deals hide.
How to judge "damaged" Pokémon cards in Japan: ignore the label, trust your eyes.
Ask to inspect cards under the shop's lighting. Check corners, edges, surface, and centering yourself.
Sunrise in Osaka and Tokyo recommends you look at their damaged cards and judge condition yourself. I found steal deals at nearly every shop by inspecting inventory others walked past.
Japanese "damaged" Pokémon cards are graded differently than you think.
A card with minor edge whitening that any Western seller would call Near Mint gets a "damaged" label in Japan. This creates massive arbitrage for international collectors who understand Western grading scales.
The best value for money in Japan's shops lives in the "damaged" section.
The best value in Japan's Pokémon card shops: "damaged" cards that are actually Near Mint.
Japanese grading is brutally strict. A tiny whitening speck? Damaged. A faint surface scratch only visible under light? Damaged.
I consistently found cards labeled "damaged" that I'd call NM by Western standards. This is the single biggest money-saving tip from my 301-shop trip.
Pokillionaire