A retail business is a store that sells merchandise to the public. Usually, retail businesses have a physical location, but Internet stores have changed that, so a retail business doesn't necessarily have to have a physical location any longer. In addition, coffee shops and gas stations, which don't sell merchandise such as clothing or consumer electronics, are retail businesses too.
Retail Stores
These include traditional department stores such as Sears and J.C. Penney. Later, discount retail department stores such as Walmart and Target entered the scene, as well as specialty stores such as PetSmart and Office Max.
Retailing Without a Store
Besides the Internet, there are retail stores without a store, such as sales through TV home shopping and door-to door sellers such as Avon, which were around before the Internet.
Retailing Through Mail Order
Retail sales through mail order usually come through catalogs that companies send through the mail. These catalogs include those that sell gift baskets that you send to loved ones for the holidays.
Retailing Through the Internet
Now that the Internet is here, many businesses run strictly online. Amazon.com is an example of an online retail department store that never had a bricks-and-mortar presence.
Retailing Through Vending Machines
Another way to retail is through vending machines. This is a very old concept in retailing, considering it dates back more than a century.
