小売
こうり · kouri · JLPT N1 · noun
retail
🏪 小売 = 小 (small) + 売 (sell): selling in small lots directly to end buyers
The counterpart 卸売 (wholesale) uses the same 売 but means big-lot sales to businesses. 小 means small, so 小売 means selling in small quantities to consumers.
小 — three small strokes around a central vertical
小 is a pictograph originally showing three tiny dots or specks, suggesting small particles or grains. Over time the dots became stylized strokes flanking a central line. The core meaning 'small' has stayed remarkably stable from oracle bone script to today.