business-to-business

noun

busi·​ness-to-busi·​ness ˈbiz-nəs-tə-ˈbiz-nəs 

: a sector of business activity that focuses on commerce performed between businesses rather than between a business and a consumer

a company that specializes in business-to-business

Business-to-business, the sale of goods and services to other companies rather than to the public, has flourished for centuries.

—Joanne Legomsky

—usually used before another noun

Business-to-business sales rose 4.4% from a year earlier, but retail sales increased less than 1%.

—The Wall Street Journal

business-to-business companies

the business-to-business market

—abbreviation B2B

Examples of business-to-business in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The moment a new customer signs the dotted line committing to a business-to-business product or service, their optimism is at an all-time high. —Paul Holder, Forbes, 12 Dec. 2024

Most of this year’s software companies are business-to-business firms. —Ketil Gjerstad, Fortune, 2 Dec. 2024

Swartz credits the company's B2B (business-to-business) investments for helping the company grow amid a volatile consumer advertising and subscription landscape. —Sara Fischer, Axios, 26 Nov. 2024

Fueling the luxury suite trend is an increasing emphasis on business-to-business marketing and corporate hospitality. —Brett Knight, Forbes, 24 Nov. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1979, in the meaning defined above