Can I return items I buy at stores?

I recently went to Seiyu to buy a flat iron, but it does not work on my hair. It does not get hot enough to make my hair straight. It is not broken, it's just a bad product. Can I return it to the store to get my money back? In the U.S. we can return something if we are not satisfied with it, but I live in Japan now. I don't know how returns works in Japan.

Normally if the product is unused, with the receipt and returned to the original packaging in a decent way, and provided it was not bought at a bargain sale, you should be able to explain the reason to the store and return it, though not all shops have "no question asked - return if not satisfied" kind of clear return policy.

But here the question is, for personal care products such as a hair straightener, I wonder if a shop is willing to take back something that you've used, for a reason that you (probably) could have asked in advance to find out (meaning if the temperature was sufficient or not for you). I would not call that a bad product, by the way, but one that just did not meet your expectations, or just not suitable for you.

If you can't use it anyway, I would try taking it back to the shop with the receipt and the packaging soon, and explain that the temperature is not high enough, and possibly ask if they have something that gives you higher temperature. If they realize that some customers do have specific temp. requirements, they might accept a return.

Gaijin111,

I suppose you don't speak Japanese, but typiclly, a local would phone the shop or manufacturer's customer service and ask for advise. Quite often they will come up with a solution, such as an alternative way to use it.