The trader sits on the footpath of the road or at the end of the road (pavement) and sell their goods such as fruits, vegetables, books etc. are called Street vendors.

Speciality Stores:
Speciality stores deal in a particular type of product under one product line only. For example, Sweet shops specialised in Tirunelveli Halwa.

i. less consumption of time
ii. no salesman required therefore cost is reduced

A number of identical retail shops with similar appearance normally deal in standardised and branded consumer products established in different localities owned and operated by manufacturers or intermediaries are called as chain stores or multiple shops.

Retailing is the process of selling the goods and services directly to the ultimate consumers in small quantities.

Limited variety:
Multiple shops deal only in limited range of products.
Absence of services:
Customers do not get credit, home delivery and other facilities.
Lack of personal touch:
The owner loses direct personal contact with the customers. The paid staffs do not take personal interest in each and every customer.

(i) The mail-order houses are retail trading houses, which sell their merchandise through mail.
(ii) They receive orders from the public through post. They deliver the articles by post.
(iii) So, mail order business is selling and buying of goods through post.

The important characteristics of Super Market are listed below :
(i) Supermarkets are generally situated at the main shopping centres 
(ii) The goods kept on racks with clearly labelled price and quality tags in such stores.
(iii) The customers move into the store to pick up goods of their requirements, bring them to the cash counter, make payment and take home delivery.
(iv) The goods are sold on cash basis only. No credit facilities are made available.

Sl.No	Hire - Purchase System	Instalment System
1	The buyer prefers to pay a lump sum or a part of the price initially	It is a type of purchase in which the price amount of the product is not paid initially but in instalments.
2	Though the buyer gets possession of the goods immediately on signing the contract the ownership does not pass on till the payment of last installment	Under this system, title or ownership of articles as well as possession is passed on to the buyer as soon as the first installment is paid
3	On default of payment, the seller is entitled to repossess the article	On default of payment, the seller cannot seize the article but recover the dues through court.
4	The owner cannot sell the property	The owner can sell the property

General Stores sell a wide variety of products under one roof, most commonly found in a local market and residential areas to satisfy the day-to-day needs of the customers residing in nearby localities. They remain open for long hours at convenient, timings and often provide credit facilities to their regular customers.

Location
These shops are located in fairly populous localities where sufficient number of customers can be approached.
Nature of product
These shops deal in a particular product line and specialise in the same product i.e, standardised and branded consumer products.
Centralised management
The manufacturing or procurement of goods for all the retail units is centralised at the head office, from where the goods are despatched to each of these shops
Fixed price
The prices of goods are fixed and all sales are made on cash basis.
Role of Sales personnel
The sales persons play an active role in helping the consumers to complete their shopping i.e., in the selection and choice of their goods as per the tastes

1. The Chamber of Commerce and Industry is an association of business and industrial houses like merchants, financiers, manufacturers, etc. in a locality, region, or state.
2. The main objective of these associations is to promote and protect the interest and goals of Indian commerce and industry.
3. These associations are non-profit making organisation and its members are institutional members.
Functions:
1. They act as national guardians of trade, commerce and industry.
2. They act as a catalyst in strengthening the internal trade of the country.
3. Interact with Government with regard to formulation and implementation related policies.
Associations or Chambers in India:
1. Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), New Delhi.
2. Associated Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ASSOCHAM)
3. Confederation of Indian Industry (CII)
4. Madras Chamber of Commerce, Chennai.
5. Tamil Nadu Traders Associations.
Role of Associations or Chambers:
(i) Transportation or inter-state movement of goods:
The chamber facilitates registration of vehicles, surface transport- facilities, construction of highways and roads in promoting interstate movement of goods.
(ii) Harmonisation of CGST and SGST:
The Chamber of Commerce constantly interact with the Government to harmonise the CGST (Central Goods and Services Tax) and SGST (State goods and Services Tax) in different states. According to Governments, new policy value added Tax is being imposed.
(iii) Marketing of Agro products and related Issues:
The association of agriculturists and other federations interact with farming co-operatives to streamline local subsidies and formulate marketing policies for selling Agro products.
(iv) Weights and measures and duplication of brands:
They help the government in formulation and implementation of uniform policies in weights and measures and prevention of duplication of brands.
(v) Promoting Sound infrastructure:
They interact with Government to construct roads, ports, electricity, railways, etc.
(vi) Labour Legislation:
They interact with the Government on regular basis the issues related to labour laws, retrenchments, compensation, etc. So that the industry can run efficiently, generate employment and achieve maximum productivity.

(i) A consumer co-operative store is a retail organisation owned, managed, and controlled by the consumers themselves to obtain products of daily use at reasonable low prices.
(ii) Its objective is to eliminate profits to middlemen by establishing a direct contact with the manufacturers.
(iii) People belonging to middle and low income groups, at least 25 persons have to come together to form a voluntary association and get it registered under the Co-operative Societies Act.
(iv) The Capital of a Co-operative Store is raised by issuing shares to members.
(v) The management of the store is democratic and entrusted to an elected managing committee, where one man one vote is the rule.
(vi) The cooperative stores are very famous in Tamilnadu.
(vii) For example, Kamadhenu and Chinthamani cooperative supermarkets in Chennai, Karpagam in Vellore, etc.

A Departmental Store is a large retail establishment offering a wide variety of products, classified into well defined departments
Features:
(i) Large Size:
1. A Departmental store is a large scale retail showroom requiring large capital investment by forming a joint stock company managed by a board of directors.
2. There is a Managing Director assisted by a general manager and several department managers.
(ii) Wide Choice :
It acts as a universal provider of a wide range of products from low priced to very high expense goods e.g. pin to Car to satisfy all the expected human needs under one roof.
(iii) Departmentally organised:
1. Goods offered for sale are classified into various departments.
2. Each department specialises in one line of product and operates as a separate unit.
(iv) Facilities provided:
It provides a number of facilities and services to the customers such as restaurant, rest rooms, recreation, packing, free home delivery, parking, etc.
(v) Centralised purchasing:
All the purchases are made centrally and directly from the manufacturers and operate separate warehouses whereas sales are decentralised in different departments.