Cash and carry

Cash and carry is a term that can mean several things:

• In retail sales, cash and carry means the customer pays and immediately takes away the purchased goods, as compared to having them delivered and paying a bill later. In that sense, most retail shops are "cash and carry".
• In wholesale sales, a cash and carry market operates by the "cash and carry" principle. In the wholesale business the buyers usually get their goods delivered; "cash and carry" markets break this tradition by working more like a usual supermarket. Convenience stores often purchase their goods from a cash and carry.
• In history, the policy of cash and carry established at the onset of World War II in 1939 revised the Neutrality Acts so any ship could come to United States ports and carry away anything they could buy. This policy aided the United Kingdom and France.
• It is also a common name for convenience or grocery stores in some countries, including Metro Cash and Carry in Germany.