Business A to Z

Every trade has words it uses without explaining. In business the cost of not knowing one is real: some of them are ordinary jargon and some of them are a decision that can take a house.

Please note: This page explains what a term means. It is general information, not legal, financial, tax or investment advice, and it does not know anything about your business. Before you sign, file or commit to anything, check it with an accountant, a solicitor, or the official guidance we link to.

Studying business? We write GCSE revision songs, and there is one for business studies. Listen to the revision playlist.

30 terms filed under R, showing 11–20 (page 2 of 3).

R

Registered office and service address

The company's official address, and the one directors give personally. Both public.

Regulated activity

Work with children or vulnerable adults that triggers barring checks. A defined legal term.

Regulatory permissions

Licences and authorisations you may need before trading.

Remote and hybrid working

Staff working away from the workplace, and the practicalities.

Repeat purchase rate

What proportion of customers buy again. Retention for businesses without subscriptions.

Restrictive covenants

Clauses limiting what someone can do after they leave. Enforceable only if reasonable.

Retained earnings

Also called Reserves, Distributable reserves

Profit the company has made and not paid out. It sets the legal limit on the dividends you can take.

Retention

Also called Customer retention, Repeat business

Keeping the customers you already have. Cheaper than acquisition and consistently underfunded.

Retention of title

A clause keeping ownership of goods until they are paid for.

Retentions

Part of a payment held back until a job is signed off. Common in construction, and often never released.

Something missing?

If there is a word you have been nodding along to, tell us and we will write it up. This library exists because of the questions people were too polite to ask.

Ask us to add a term