Nippon Games
Market research project disguised as a small business. A closed-loop test to understand pricing, trust, and sourcing efficiency.
Nippon Games
Market research project disguised as a small business. The goal was not scale—it was learning.
Platform analysis: eBay, Wallapop, Vinted behavior and conversion patterns.
Sourcing strategy: non-tourist Japan, recycle chains, strict buy rules.
Decision system: tier-based pricing, trust protocol, margin thresholds.
Every transaction was a data point. Full cycle: sourcing to post-sale.
Key Points
- •Platform analysis: eBay, Wallapop, Vinted dynamics
- •Sourcing strategy: non-tourist Japan, recycle chains
- •Tier-based pricing model for margin optimization
- •Trust-building system: photos, condition reports, speed
- •End-to-end operations: sourcing to delivery
- •Closed-loop MVP designed for learning
Context
Personal project. Market research lab with a closed-loop MVP. The question: can a solo operator compete in a niche market by being smarter about sourcing and trust-building, rather than by having more capital?
My Role
Founder. Research, sourcing, pricing, operations, and customer communication.
What I Did
- •Analyzed platform dynamics: eBay rewards reputation, Wallapop rewards speed, Vinted rewards price.
- •Built sourcing strategy: non-tourist areas in Japan have 40-60% lower prices than Akihabara.
- •Designed decision system: buy criteria (condition A/B, known titles, margin >25%), pricing tiers (common/popular/rare), trust protocol (8+ photos, honest notes, 24h response).
- •Managed full operations cycle: physical sourcing, photography, cataloging, multi-platform listing, customer communication, packaging, international shipping.
- •Extracted buyer insights from real conversations to refine catalog, pricing and descriptions.
Results
Sellable inventory 36. Sold 24. Median time to sell 20 days. Gross margin 60.3%. Gross ROI 152.1%. Key insight: trust converts better than price—detailed photos and honest condition reports outperform discounts.
Key Learning
Sourcing is the moat: access to non-tourist supply chains is the real competitive advantage. Operations discipline and trust win over capital.
Employer Value
I can build an operational system from zero, measure it, iterate fast, and own the full customer journey. I understand how to test hypotheses with real market data.