where to find MNZ heels for under $50
japanese ebay is a goldmine for designer shoes right now
It’s been a while since I browsed Japanese eBay, but I think the best cadence for me is every 2 months. Enough time for new listings to sift through, because it is a lot of work to search.
What I like about shopping on Japanese eBay lately is that I can shop slower and take my time to consider items. Part of it is the language barrier. It takes extra time to translate item details, which actually forces me to read everything.
Example: a few months ago, I was so close to buying a Steven Alan sweater which looked like wool or alpaca but I couldn’t decipher the composition label, it was too blurry for Google photo translate to process. It was $20 and I was like…should I just buy it and hope it’s all natural fiber? But I ended up asking my friend who translated it and confirmed there was a certain % of acrylic in the yarn blend. So I passed, and I’m glad I took the extra steps to think about it because when I looked at the listing a few days later I realized I wasn’t even sure about the raspberry color.
I like not understanding every part of the interface. I like the brainteasers of converting shoe sizes, cm to in, currency exchange rates, etc. It’s a very different experience from using Depop or TheRealReal. I know enough to navigate and buy items I really want, and that’s all I need.
Anyways. I’m poking around on Japanese eBay for springtime items like trench coats and cardigans. I always check shoes too. One brand I always check for is MNZ, because it’s consistently priced lower than on any US based platform. And there’s some great deals right now.
Here’s a compilation of the best listings I found from my favorite US based designers, all under or around $50: