What does buying on credit mean to you?
To purchase something with the promise that you will pay in the future.
When buying something on credit, you acquire the item immediately, but you pay for it at a later date. This is a common practice that business owners us to encourage people to come into their stores, even people who don’t actually have the money.
It is a very old idea that has only grown over time, and, today, it is a common way to pay for anything from big purchases to small items and groceries. With the advent of the credit card, even those people with sufficient funds will purchase items on credit, and they will pay off their bill each month.
Origin of Buying On Credit
Define buying on credit The concept of credit itself is an old one. In fact, people have been buying things on promises since the dawn of trade, and the profession of being a creditor is as old as the mid-1400s. The word comes from the Latin creditum, which meant a loan, thing entrusted to another.
In the late 1800s, stores had already begun to advertise, “Buy now and pay when you can!” In 1906, we can see an example in The Lancaster News of liquor being bought on credit,
The old board of directors of the state dispensary has loaded down the state with about $700,000 worth of liquor bought on credit in open and direct violation of the law.
