The material included in this set draws on international sources from the 1950s to the present day, to provide an invaluable collection on retailing. The collection is arranged as follows:

* Volume 1: The Evolution and Development of Retailing
* Volume 2:The Environments for Retailing
* Volume 3: (In 2 Parts) Retail Practices and Operations
* Volume 4: Comparative and International Retailing

The set is fully indexed and includes a general introduction by the editors outlining the current characteristics of the retailing field, which is further supplemented by thematic introductions to individual volumes.