In general, just walking around to the high end audio stores in Tokyo, you will find neither Koetsu nor Lyra cartridges for sale, on open display. Whereas most good stores display dozens of other cartridges from a wide variety of well known brands that you can just buy, on the spot. Off the top of my head, I would say the price differential between Tokyo and the US, for cartridges that are readily available in both locales, is from ~5% to 30%, cheaper in Japan. My hunch is that Lyra deliberately prevents local sale (i.e., in Tokyo or possibly throughout Japan), except perhaps by special order. (I've never tried, so don't know.). Ten years ago, I was able to buy a Koetsu Urushi from a dealer in Tokyo, but I had to pay in advance and wait two weeks for delivery. Also, I needed an interpreter in the person of my son, who lives in Tokyo and is fluent in Japanese; his help was essential, as the salespersons could speak virtually no English. The cost savings was vast, compared to US prices, which speaks to the up-charge incurred by the US distributor.
Kiseki is another matter. Although I always thought that Kiseki was a progenitor to Koetsu, designed by the elder Sugano-san before he formed Koetsu, I don't know what the situation is right now with respect to the revival of Kiseki. I was in Tokyo in May, and although I did not spend a whole lot of time roaming in Akihabara (the electronics section of Tokyo and the electronics capitol of the world, IMO), I did not see Kiseki cartridges on sale. On the other hand, I wasn't looking especially for Kiseki. You'd probably be better off in Hong Kong or using one of the Asian vendors on eBay.
Kiseki is another matter. Although I always thought that Kiseki was a progenitor to Koetsu, designed by the elder Sugano-san before he formed Koetsu, I don't know what the situation is right now with respect to the revival of Kiseki. I was in Tokyo in May, and although I did not spend a whole lot of time roaming in Akihabara (the electronics section of Tokyo and the electronics capitol of the world, IMO), I did not see Kiseki cartridges on sale. On the other hand, I wasn't looking especially for Kiseki. You'd probably be better off in Hong Kong or using one of the Asian vendors on eBay.