A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

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Call Tag
Authorization to return merchandise with the shipping being paid by the company requesting the return. Often referred to as "sending a call tag."

Camera-ready Art
Ads or other items to be printed that are already assembled in a form that can be printed without further alteration.

Cancel Date, Cancellation Date
The date after which you no longer want a merchandise order to be shipped. You have the right to refuse any goods sent after that date.

Carrying Charge
Interest on unpaid balances.

Carrying Cost
The expense of having money tied up in inventory items as well as providing storage and display space for them.

Carryover
Merchandise left after most of an order has been sold or after a season has ended.

Case Pack
A full carton of a single item, sometimes specified as the minimum quantity that can be ordered of that item. Vendors allowing less than case pack orders (broken case packs) sometimes give lower prices on full case packs.

Cash and Carry
A trade show or warehouse that allows merchandise to be purchased right then and carried out rather than being ordered and shipped. Also called immediate delivery.

Cash Discount
A discount on an invoice when the bill is paid on receipt of the goods or earlier than the due date.

Cash Flow
The need to generate enough money from sales to pay the bills.

Cash Wrap, Cash Wrap Counter
The checkout area where customers conduct transactions and have their purchases put in bags or boxes or gift wrapped.

Charge-back
Retailer deductions from a vendor's invoice for breakage, freight allowance, advertising, shortages, and so on.

Classification
An assortment of related merchandise grouped together within a store. Also called a category or department.

Closeouts
Discontinued merchandise sold by wholesale vendors at a discount. Closeouts often represent a good opportunity to add greater markup as well as offer the goods to customers at a more attractive price.

Common Area
Shared public areas in a shopping center, such as the hallways, restrooms, and parking lot.

Common Area Maintenance
A term in a lease that refers to paying for the upkeep of sections of a mall or shopping center shared by all the tenants.

Common Carrier
Long-haul trucking company using semi trucks to transport large shipments of goods to various delivery points. Also called a less than truckload (LTL)shipper.

Consignment
Merchandise displayed in a store, by a third party, that is not paid for by the store owner until the items are sold. Typically, a store owner will take items on consignment and when the item is sold, the artist or manufacturer will receive a percentage of the sale and the store owner will receive the rest.

Cooperative Advertising
Advertising costs shared by a vendor and retailer, or sometimes by several retailers in an area.

Cost
The wholesale cost of merchandise.

Cost Averaging
Basing the retail price of an item on the median of two different wholesale prices, usually the standard price and a discounted price.

Cost of Goods Sold (COGS)
A calculation of the total wholesale cost of merchandise that has been sold, taking into account shipping costs and markdowns.

Cost Per Thousand (CPM)
A term often used in advertising for measuring costs against number of readers/viewers.

Counter Cards
Freestanding in-store signs, often with easel backs, that promote a certain line of merchandise or announce a promotion.

Credit References
Data provided by a store owner to a new vendor in order to apply for net-30 or other favorable payment terms.

Cross Merchandising
Displaying complementary items together in one grouping, such as mixing a coastal-themed table runner with ocean blue candles or shell candleholders.

Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
Maintaining detailed information on customers, such as contact information, purchase history, preferences, etc., in order to improve customer service.

Cyber Monday
The Monday after Thanksgiving, one of the busiest online shopping days of the year.