| chain store | |
| —n | |
| Also called: multiple store one of several retail enterprises under the same ownership and management | |
| a chattering or flighty, light-headed person. |
| a fool or simpleton; ninny. |
One of many retail stores owned by a single corporation and offering similar products. Examples include Sears and Safeway.
chain store
any of two or more retail stores having the same ownership and selling the same lines of goods. Chain stores account for an important segment of retailing operations in the Americas, western Europe, and Japan. Together with the department store and the mail-order company, chain stores represent the first successful application of large-scale integrated methods to a form of retailing.
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