What is "business-to-business"

a. Of businesses selling to other businesses.

Business-to-business (B2B) refers to a situation where one business makes a commercial transaction with another. This typically occurs when:

• A business is sourcing materials for their production process (e.g. a food manufacturer purchasing salt).
• A business needs the services of another for operational reasons (e.g. a food manufacturer employing an accountancy firm to audit their finances).
• A business re-sells goods and services produced by others (e.g. a retailer buying the end product from the food manufacturer).

B2B is often contrasted against business-to-consumer (B2C). In B2B commerce it is often the case that the parties to the relationship have comparable negotiating power, and even when they don't, each party typically involves professional staff and legal counsel in the negotiation of terms, whereas B2C is shaped to a far greater degree by economic implications of information asymmetry.