Friday, November 22, 2013

KS Snacks (Service Review)

Geography has a profound impact on who we are. Many people don't realize it, but the weather not only shapes how you respond to temperature, but also affects personality. There's a reason that my husband is mellow, relaxed and tends not to worry and I'm more up-tight, organized, and fret. If you grow up in California, at least in the areas with fairly temperate weather year-round, you're not facing times of physical hardship and a concurrent economic impact.

One thing I've realized all too well is that geography has played a part in my blogging. Originally, I could do this because I lived in Japan. Now, I can do it because I live in an area with a relative plethora of Asian markets. I realize that not all readers are as geographically fortunate as me. My experiences are shaped by my access to such places. My readers may not be so lucky.

When I'm offered the chance to review a mail order service, I'm pleased to do so because I know that such places may be the only way for some of my readers to get their hands on the types of things I can take access to for granted. In this case, I'm the one in the "temperate" snack purchasing situation and they're the ones in the cold, harsh winters.

KS Snacks, an Indonesian seller of Asian snack foods, contacted me and offered to send me a package to review their food as well as their service. Of course, I happily accepted. If you look at their web site, you'll note that their prices are in Indonesian rupiah and there are some pretty big numbers. That's okay because you can easily convert to your home currency using Google's currency translation (just type "Indonesian rupiah to (your home currency)" in a search box). For reference, $1 U.S. dollar = 11,702 rupiah as of the writing of this post.

The selection includes a good variety of Indonesian treats as well as Japanese ones. For example, there is a KitKat mini variety pack with twelve different mini bars for just a shade under $6. For reference, I can tell you that the retail price of a bag of 14 Japanese KitKat minis in Japan was the equivalent of $6.50 U.S. Also, the Fujiya Matcha "Look" bar is $2.19. Though such bars cost around 100 yen (about a dollar) in Japan, I never pay less than $2.00 for them at Asian markets here and often pay exactly the same price as KS Snacks charges - $2.19.

For Japanese items, the prices at KS Snacks are comparable to what I'm paying here in the U.S. However, if you're curious about Indonesian snacks, then you're in a position to find some interesting food at bargain prices. One of the more intriguing items is a red wine pretzel snack, Pejoy, for $2.13. There are also two Pocky flavors, mango mousse and blueberry yogurt, at the same price.

In terms of communicating with KS Snacks, I have to say that they were polite, professional, and very helpful. There was no problem at all communicating in English though I'm pretty sure it was the second language of my contact at the company. They sent my package by registered mail and have order tracking for both domestic and international parcels. This is an added service that I have never seen from any other seller who I've reviewed.

Now, for the unboxing...


The parcel comes very well wrapped and protected in a sturdy box. This may not seem like a big deal, but I've received two empty parcels since I moved to a new city. The post office here mishandles mail more than any I've ever experienced before. I'm gratified that this was unassailable or I could have received a package full of crumbs or another empty box.


Ah, bubble wrap. You are my good friend and provide hours of amusement to those who are easily amused... not that I would fall into such a category.

A fine assortment which I'll be reviewing in the coming weeks. 

I was sent a good cross-section of items to sample and I'll be posting my first review of an item next week. It will be interesting to compare the Indonesian golden Oreos to American ones since my husband and I recently got some for free and I now have some first-hand experience with them.

With Christmas coming up, it might make for an interesting gift to assemble an exotic snacks package from KS Snacks. It would be easy to put together a nice mix of some of the more expensive Japanese items and the cheaper Indonesian and other Asian items. I know that I was delighted by my package of surprise goodies from them. 

2 comments:

Unknown said...

If there is an indomie mie goreng in a white plastic, you should try it! It's the most popular noodle in Indonesia. Many foreigner love it too~

Unknown said...

can't wait to read the review :)