The company sells and purchases roughly ten thousand items per day, and has a point of sale system that includes over 20 million items. Its original pricing and appraisal operations are recognized as having a major impact on the secondhand book market. The company maintains a policy of purchasing items at roughly half the cost it plans to resell the item, which was noted by "The New York Times" as bringing transparency to the often opaque appraisal market. The company actively seeks foreign customers, offering an English-language online store and sales staff fluent in foreign languages. The company also promotes itself as a tourist attraction in Japan, and is marketed as a major destination for foreign "otaku". In 2003, Mandarake was accused of selling improperly-acquired manuscripts by Kenshi Hirokane and Yayoi Watanabe. The items in question were sold to Mandarake by Hirokane and Watanabe's publisher Sakura Comics, rather than returned to the artists, in an unsuccessful attempt by the publisher to stave off bankruptcy. Mandarake contended that it had no way of knowing that Sakura Publishing was not permitted to sell the manuscripts; the manuscripts were ultimately returned to the artists in a subsequent lawsuit. In 2016, the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department cited Mandarake under the for insufficiently verifying the identities of individuals who purchased items from Mandarake in online auctions. Under that law, individuals purchasing secondhand goods must identify themselves with photo identification, in order for police to track the movement of secondhand goods that may have been stolen. In response, the Tokyo District Court suspended Mandarake Complex's online sales license for one month, and fined the company ¥300,000. In 2018, an original illustration from "Ai to Makoto", one of a series of fifteen believed lost in 1974, was listed for sale in an online auction by Mandarake. "Ai to Makoto" publisher Kodansha requested that the illustration be returned to the company, and issued a statement asking the public to not bid in the auction. The illustration ultimately sold at auction to a private buyer for ¥4 million. On November 16, 2012, a former Mandarake employee petitioned the Tokyo District Court for the payment of unpaid overtime from the company, claiming that he was not compensated for time spent at work before and after store opening hours. The plaintiff sought ¥2,292,246 in unpaid wages and additional damages of ¥2,194,046. The court ruled in favor of the plaintiff, and ordered Mandarake to pay ¥2,233,606 in unpaid wages and additional damages of ¥2,108,165.