Merchant

Merchants negotiating cotton, 1873 in New Orleans

Merchants are people that deal with trade. That means they buy and sell goods that they do not produce themselves, in order to get profit.

Merchants can be two types:

1. A wholesale merchant works between producer and retail merchant. Some wholesale merchants only organise the movement of goods rather than move the goods themselves.
2. A retail merchant sells goods to consumers (including businesses), commonly known as retailers. A shop owner is a retail merchant.

In the US, "merchant" is any person while engaged in a business or profession or a seller who deals regularly in the type of goods sold. Under the common law in the United States, merchants are held to a higher standard in the selling of products than those who are not engaged in the sale of goods as a profession. For example, when a merchant sells something, he or she is expected to give a warranty, guaranteeing that the product is fit to be sold, even if there is nothing in writing to this effect.

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