Media sellers - where to find CoO markings?

[cottagewoman]

So came into a nice clean lot of anime DVD/Blu-ray sets. A handful are marked made in USA, most have nothing printed anywhere. Some Bandai entertainment, some Funamation, etc. I know there are markings on the play side of the discs, but so far haven't seen any clear markings such as Made in USA or Made in Canada. Any guidance here is appreciated!

[reallynicestamps]

You could google the company names in hopes that the company website gives you a clue.

And the print on the packaging may also help if it is in Japanese or Korean.

This is Japanese

これは日本人です

This is Korean

이건 한국말이에요

[cottagewoman-ca]

Really appreciate your feedback!  Unfortunately worried that if it isn't clearly marked anywhere I'll have issues with cross-border shippers (not CP).  I've found through searching where the discs were made, but when not marked, don't know if CBP will just reject as made in China.  Will have to wait for the CP situation to get straightened out - not trusting that avenue quite yet.

[cottagewoman]

That last reply was on my other account - sorry, sometimes when I'm responding in browser (not mobile) not sure which account is logged in!

[ypdc_dennis]

Bandai  -- the USA operations closed in 2013, but the brand name is still used under license for some North American releases.

Funimation -- bought by Sony, and now mostly merged under the Crunchroll brand.

I'm not aware of any titles from them that were printed in Canada.

There were a bunch of titles with the discs being produced in Mexico. Labelled as such on the shrinkwrap -- which is no help for used.  There were also a few Bandai titles that were produced in Japan (those should be easy to spot).

For the most part I treat both companies as USA for their USA/Canada releases.

-;-

[dinomitesales]

The vast majority of media for the North American market (i.e. NTSC/Region 1 stuff) is printed in either the USA or Mexico. If it doesn't explicitly state "Made in USA/Canada/Mexico" then look for the distributors name on the packaging - often there will be an address for the distributor and in the absence of additional information just use the country that address refers to.

If there's absolutely nothing on the exterior case then look on the discs themselves. If there's nothing on the label side of the disc then flip it over and look at the tiny text around the hole in the center, often it will tell you where the discs were manufactured (but that doesn't necessarily indicate where the DVD/Blu-ray as a whole was assembled and distributed from).

If you still can't find anything then do as other's suggested and look up the company that produced/distributed the media item and see where there based out of. At the end of the day, you're doing your best to ascertain the information and that's all you can do. Most media items aren't Made in China (aside from maybe the plastic cases themselves) so there's little risk in having them questioned/challenged by a customs officer.

[cottagewoman]

Thanks to both dinomite and Dennis! Do either of you use cross-border, or CP only? If cross border - any issues to date? Thx.

[ypdc_dennis]

I'm a Canada Post shipper (using tracked packet USA labels through eBay).  Last USA sale was a paperback book, which arrived without issues.

[sapphyres-designer-jewellery]

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@cottagewoman wrote:

That last reply was on my other account - sorry, sometimes when I'm responding in browser (not mobile) not sure which account is logged in!

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I used to have that issue, but generally when I reply, it's with this account. When I start a new thread, it's usually with my main account.

I figure if I'm giving advice it doesn't matter which account I'm on, but I like to be on my main account when seeking help.

C.

[dinomitesales]

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@cottagewoman wrote:
Thanks to both dinomite and Dennis! Do either of you use cross-border, or CP only? If cross border - any issues to date? Thx.

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Normally I'm CPC only, but I've had everything on UPS since early last week in anticipation of the potential strike (haven't sold anything since, unfortunately). Didn't have any issues with any Canada Post shipments prior to that though.

Supposedly CPC will be providing a response to the union tomorrow so I'm waiting for that before I flip everything back over to Canada Post shipping. There's still too big of a risk of a labour disruption at this very moment.

[flipistics]

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@cottagewoman wrote:

That last reply was on my other account - sorry, sometimes when I'm responding in browser (not mobile) not sure which account is logged in!

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I find it easiest to use a different browser for each account / store.

[ilikehockeyjerseys]

I don't have personal experience with using Chit Chats since the Tariffs, but in their blog they ask people to mark their products for country of origin if it already isn't cleary marked. They want people to put a sticker on the product that says "Made In XXXXX".

While some DVDs will have text on the back cover saying Printed In XXXX or Made in XXXXX - I would consider adding a more legible marking just to be safe. I wouldn't attach a sticker directly to the case, but you can put the media in a poly bag and attach the sticker to the poly bag. 

My assumption is that if Chit Chats is physically checking products for COI markings, you might run the risk of having your product rejected if the Made In XXXX marking is not evident. With a lot of DVDs, it is either buried in the back text in very small print, or printed on the underside of the disc. I can't say for sure whether this might cause Chit Chats to reject your item, but I would play it safe by adding a very evident marking. 

[lotzofuniquegoodies]

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@ilikehockeyjerseys wrote:

I don't have personal experience with using Chit Chats since the Tariffs, but in their blog they ask people to mark their products for country of origin if it already isn't cleary marked. They want people to put a sticker on the product that says "Made In XXXXX".

While some DVDs will have text on the back cover saying Printed In XXXX or Made in XXXXX - I would consider adding a more legible marking just to be safe. I wouldn't attach a sticker directly to the case, but you can put the media in a poly bag and attach the sticker to the poly bag. 

My assumption is that if Chit Chats is physically checking products for COI markings, you might run the risk of having your product rejected if the Made In XXXX marking is not evident. With a lot of DVDs, it is either buried in the back text in very small print, or printed on the underside of the disc. I can't say for sure whether this might cause Chit Chats to reject your item, but I would play it safe by adding a very evident marking. 

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Has ANYONE been able to get an accurate explanation on how US customs is treating the following regarding books? This scenario is very common in many categories of products.

Item (a book) is Distributed by a company in Marietta GA USA  - Small business headquarted there that supplies a selection of educational products. 

That book is Printed and Bound in China.

[flipistics]

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@lotzofuniquegoodies wrote:

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Has ANYONE been able to get an accurate explanation on how US customs is treating the following regarding books? This scenario is very common in many categories of products.

Item (a book) is Distributed by a company in Marietta GA USA  - Small business headquarted there that supplies a selection of educational products. 

That book is Printed and Bound in China.

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The place of manufacture should be where the book was printed and bound. Who imported it for distribution afterwards should be completely irrelevant.

[needsmorerobots]

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@cottagewoman wrote:
So came into a nice clean lot of anime DVD/Blu-ray sets. A handful are marked made in USA, most have nothing printed anywhere. Some Bandai entertainment, some Funamation, etc. I know there are markings on the play side of the discs, but so far haven't seen any clear markings such as Made in USA or Made in Canada. Any guidance here is appreciated!

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You'll most likely still have issues at the border

Usually the origin of manufacture is printed on the factory seal. Lately it's Mexico. Even if you do manage to get a manufacture location for the discs, that doesn't apply for the cases, which most likely are made in China.

It's the roll of the dice.

[lotzofuniquegoodies]

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@flipistics wrote:

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@lotzofuniquegoodies wrote:

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Has ANYONE been able to get an accurate explanation on how US customs is treating the following regarding books? This scenario is very common in many categories of products.

Item (a book) is Distributed by a company in Marietta GA USA  - Small business headquarted there that supplies a selection of educational products. 

That book is Printed and Bound in China.

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The place of manufacture should be where the book was printed and bound. Who imported it for distribution afterwards should be completely irrelevant.

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The problem is the should be. More moot is the fact that there is a chance tariffs were applied when item first arrived in the USA. Like how many times can an item get re-taxed?

[flipistics]

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@lotzofuniquegoodies wrote:

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The problem is the should be. More moot is the fact that there is a chance tariffs were applied when item first arrived in the USA. Like how many times can an item get re-taxed?

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To infinity and beyond. The application of tariffs occurs when a commercial good crosses a border. It doesn't matter if it has been tariffed before or not.

[cottagewoman]

I'm shipping only those with Manufactured in USA marks via cross border services. The rest I'll wait until CP is stable, which could be a while and those that aren't marked are the bulk of the purchase.