The limitations of departmental stores are: 
(i) High cost of operations:
A departmental store requires a large building with ample parking at a central place. It has to incur heavy expenditure on salaries, maintenance of building, customer services, advertising, etc. As a result, establishment and overhead cost of operations are very high.
(ii) Higher prices:
Due to high operating costs, prices of goods in a departmental store are comparatively high. Only rich persons can afford to buy goods at a departmental store.
(iii) Distance:
It is located at a central place of a city, away from people living in suburban areas have to travel a long distance to reach the store.
(iv) Lack of personal touch:
The management of a store finds it very difficult to maintain personal contact with .the customers. The salaried staff may not take interest in securing the satisfaction and goodwill of the customers
(v) Difficult to establish:
A large amount of capital investment and a large number of specialised persons are required to establish a departmental store.
(vi) High risk:
Due to central location and large-scale operations, risk of loss is very high. Change in tastes and fashion and market fluctuations may lead to heavy loss.

(i) Convenience in buying:
The departmental stores provide great convenience to all the members in a family in buying almost all goods of their requirements at one place. A large variety of goods available in all the departments enable customers to save time and no need to run from one place to another to complete their shopping.
(ii) Attractive services:
It aims at providing maximum services and facilities to the customers such as home delivery of goods, execution of telephone orders, restrooms, restaurants, salons, children game centers, etc.
(iii) Central location:
These stores are usually located in central places so that more people can approach easily.
(iv) Elimination of middleman:
A departmental store combines both the functions of retailing as well as warehousing. They purchase directly from manufacturers and operate separate warehouses. It helps in eliminating undesirable middlemen between the producers and the consumers.
(v) Economies of large scale operations:
The Departmental stores are organised at a large scale i.e., buy goods in bulk, therefore they enjoy the benefit of special discount. In turn, the customers get their goods in quality and lower price.

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

The types of ltinerants are as follows:
a. Peddlers and Hawkers:
Peddlers are individuals who sell their goods by carrying on their head or shoulders moving from place to place on foot. Hawkers are petty retailers who sell their goods at various places such as. bus stop, railway station, Public Park and gardens, residential areas and other public places using a convenient vehicle to carry goods from place to place
b. Street Vendors:
The traders sit 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.
c. Market Traders:
Small traders open their shops at different places on fixed days or dates such as every Sunday or alternative Wednesdays and so on (Varasandhai - weekly market). They deal in one particular line of merchandise and in low priced consumer items of daily use. Examples Pollachi, Manapparai, Ranipet, etc.
d. Cheap Jacks:
Those retailers who have independent shops of temporary nature in a business locality are depending upon the potentiality of the area. They deal in consumer goods and services such as shoes and chappals, plastic items, repair of watches, etc.