Brick-and-Mortar companies who wish to bring their businesses to the Web must determine the level of cooperation and integration the two separate entities will share. A company that can offer its services both online and offline can add value to its customers' experience. One of the major issues in e-commerce today is how to integrate he Internet into offline business. The following companies have all worked out successful answers to this question.
Barnes & Noble (www.bn.com) has established itself as a leader in the booksellers market both online and offline. Customers have access to the same inventory online as they do in the actual stores. In the event that a customer is dissatisfied with a purchase made online, they can return it to their local brick-and-mortar store.
CircuitCity (www.circuitcity.com), a store specializing in consumer electronics, appliances, audio and video, has effectively integrated its online and offline entities. CircuitCity has tied its offline store to its online store, allowing customers to place orders online and pick the same from their local stores, though shipping is also available.
The Web has created such great opportunity for some companies that they have abandoned their bricks all-together. Egghead (http://www.egghead.com/) started out as a company that sold computers and peripherals through small brick-and-mortar stores. Many of their competitors were catalog businesses that often under priced them. The Web gave Egghead the opportunity to abandon unnecessary property overhead and access a global market.