The tech world loves three letter acronyms (TLAs, for those who like recursion) and regular commerce is going the same way. O2O has been around a few years, but what started as just a way for physical retailers (the "Offline" part) to compete with online retailers has moved on. Now there are companies whose whole business model is built around this strategy, such as UBER, Deliveroo and Airbnb.
This is a good overview of the current state of play, but what's clear is that the full range of possibilities in O2O is by no means exhausted
The idea behind the Online to Offline business model is to use online, and particularly mobile, tools with businesses that are offline in nature. This brings supply online that was previously not accessible by remote means. O2O strategies are great for businesses dealing with consumer goods and services like restaurants, beauty salons and movies, to name a few. .... It isn’t just the food & hospitality industries that has been disrupted by O2O, the fashion world has too – enter, click & collect. .... Beacon technology within (predominantly) the fashion industry has given retailers a route to bridge the offline and online relationship for in-store customers.
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