What it means
خردهفروشی (khorde-forushi) means retail, the sale of goods in small quantities to individual customers. The word is built entirely from Persian roots: خرده (khorde) means small piece or bit, and فروشی (forushi) means selling. A خردهفروش (khorde-forush) is a retailer, and the activity of running a shop is خردهفروشی. It is the direct counterpart to عمدهفروشی (omde-forushi), wholesale.
How to use it
- اون یه مغازه خردهفروشی داره. (un ye maghâze-ye khorde-forushi dâre.) “He has a retail shop.”
- فروش خردهفروشی امسال خوب بوده. (forush-e khorde-forushi emsâl khub bude.) “Retail sales have been good this year.”
- این جنس رو خردهفروشی میفروشند یا عمده؟ (in jens ro khorde-forushi miforushand yâ omde?) “Do they sell this item retail or wholesale?”
- قیمت خردهفروشی با قیمت عمده فرق داره. (qeymat-e khorde-forushi bâ qeymat-e omde farq dâre.) “The retail price is different from the wholesale price.”
Cultural note
Small independent retail shops, known as مغازه (maghâze), are a cornerstone of daily life in Iranian cities and neighborhoods. Despite the growth of shopping malls and online platforms, neighborhood خردهفروشی shops remain deeply embedded in Iranian social life, often run by families across generations. The shopkeeper-customer relationship in Iranian retail frequently involves tarof (تعارف), the Persian custom of polite back-and-forth, which can shape everything from price negotiation to whether a customer accepts a complimentary tea.