Retail

Retail involves the process of selling consumer goods or services to customers through multiple channels of distribution to earn a profit. Demand is identified and then satisfied through a supply chain. Attempts are made to increase demand through advertising. In the 2000s, an increasing amount of retailing began occurring online using electronic payment and delivery via a courier or via postal mail. Retailing as a sector includes subordinated services, such as delivery. The term "retailer" is also applied where a service provider services the small orders of a large number of individuals, rather than large orders of a small number of wholesale, corporate or government clientele.