Write short notes on the following types of retail outlets: (a) supermarket (b) mobile shops (c) department stores (d) chain stores (e) hawking.

Answer Details

Types of retail outlets

• (a) Supermarket: a large self-service store, usually selling groceries and household goods, where customers pick items from open shelves, place them in baskets or trolleys and pay at a checkout counter on their way out. Goods are pre-packed and price-marked.
• (b) Mobile shops: shops built inside vehicles such as vans that move from place to place, taking goods directly to customers in different locations, especially where there are no fixed shops. They save customers the trouble of travelling.
• (c) Department stores: very large retail establishments, usually housed in one big building, divided into several sections or departments, each selling a different class of goods (clothing, furniture, cosmetics, etc.) under one roof and one management.
• (d) Chain (multiple) stores: a group of shops that are owned by the same firm, sell the same range of goods, bear the same name and are managed centrally, with branches spread in different towns. They buy in bulk and sell at standard prices.
• (e) Hawking: a form of petty retailing in which the seller (hawker) moves about from street to street or house to house carrying goods, often on the head or in the hands, to sell to customers wherever they are found.