Book Description

The origins of retail are old as trade itself. Barter was the oldest form of trade. For centuries, most merchandise was sold in market place or by peddlers. Medieval markets were dependent on local sources for supplies of perishable food because Journey was far too slow to allow for long distance transportation. However, customer did travel considerable distance for specialty items. The peddler, who provided people with the basic goods and necessities that they could not be self sufficient in, followed one of the earliest forms of retail trade. Even in prehistoric time, the peddler traveled long distances to bring products to locations which were in short supply. “They could be termed as early entrepreneurs who saw the opportunity in serving the needs of the consumers at a profit” Later retailers opened small shops, stocking them with such produce. As towns and cities grew, these retail stores began stocking a mix of convenience merchandise, enabling the formation of high-street bazaars that become the hub retail activity in every city. In the great sweep of social and retail history, the ‘modern’ shopping experience can be said to have commenced with the appearance of the department store in the middle of the 19th century.