Business-to-Consumer (B2C), is a business model popularized by E-Commerce in the 1990s, where a business is selling directly to its consumer, who is the final user of the business' product. There are several other business models, such as; B2B, B2B2C, etc.
B2C is the most commonly used business/ sales model, although it did not originate in the 90s. B2C was first coined by Michael Aldrich in 1979. In that era, it mostly referenced things like retail shopping, restaurant dining, television advertising, and more. Anywhere a company was directly providing its services or products directly-to-consumers became referred to as a B2C business.
Despite the B2C model's success, it is no simple endeavor to create a successful B2C business. This specific model requires businesses to maintain an impactful relationship with their clientele to ensure recurring business as well as referrals. B2C in brick and mortar establishments became much more difficult to maintain after the arrival of internet commerce, or E-commerce as it is more commonly referred to today. Many storefront businesses, employing B2C tactics, succumbed due to the disruptive nature of the e-commerce conception.
