A department store is a very large retail establishment which is divided into autonomous sales areas, each with its own specialty and sales counter. Traditional department stores sell a combination of clothing, personal accessories, beauty products, household goods, and even such wares as toys, books, specialty foods, and technological products. Many more modern department stores limit themselves to clothing and items such as perfumes, cosmetics, and purses. They are normally at least 10,000 square meters in area, though exceptions are possible.

Department stores are similar to hypermarkets in size and variety of goods; however a hypermarket is generally less elegant, with a utilitarian almost warehouse-like design, and usually occupies a single floor level while department stores are traditionally multilevel.

The autonomous specialist sales areas and their counters are part of the store's organization. The usual 10,000-square-meter scale permits exceptions, and a traditional multilevel layout is not an absolute condition.