An online store is a virtual business which allows consumers to find out about goods and services that a company offers over the internet, regardless of location. Online stores can be created with the objective of materializing a new business idea that does not depend on any brick-and-mortar store, or they may be subsidiaries of one.
This distinction is important when creating the e-commerce store, since the purpose of creating one can be diverse; a famous brick-and-mortar company that chooses to create an online store may have a more advertising than commercial objective, whereas a 100% of online businesses not only expect to reach advertising targets, but also a profitable one over the internet.