Off the shelf

Off the shelf

In finance or when buying things, off the shelf refers to products that have already been designed and made, compared to "made to measure," (or "one-off," "custom-built," "custom made," etc.), which refers to products that have to be made to a special order.

Off-the-shelf products are generally cheaper and more quickly available than made to measure.

In the manufacturing of clothing, equivalent terms are off the rack, ready-to-wear, and "prêt-à-porter".

In computer science, off-the-shelf software is available as a stock item, "i.e.", not specially designed or custom-made.


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  • off the shelf — ˌoff the ˈshelf adjective COMMERCE an off the shelf product is made to a standard design and can be bought in the shops: • off the shelf database software • Standard off the shelf systems are displacing the custom products that were the company s …   Financial and business terms

  • off the shelf — 1. Immediately available, in stock 2. (of a company) registered only in order to be sold • • • Main Entry: ↑shelf * * * off the shelf phrase available to buy without being ordered or designed for a particular customer The company could have a… …   Useful english dictionary

  • off-the-shelf — ˌoff the ˈshelf adjective COMMERCE an off the shelf product is made to a standard design and can be bought in the shops: • off the shelf database software • Standard off the shelf systems are displacing the custom products that were the company s …   Financial and business terms

  • Off-the-shelf — may refer to: Off the shelf component Commercial off the shelf, a phrase in computing terminology Ready to wear Shelf corporation, a type of company Off the Shelf Festival, a festival of writing and reading which takes place each year in… …   Wikipedia

  • off-the-shelf — adjective, adverb sold for general use, not made for a particular person or purpose: off the shelf computer software You can buy all these items off the shelf …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • off-the-shelf — adj. Made in large quantities and intended to be used without modifications; similar to {off the rack}, but not restricted to clothing. Opposite of {custom made}, {made to order}, or {one of a kind}. [WordNet 1.5 +PJC] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • off-the-shelf — adj, adv already made and available in shops rather than being designed especially for a customer ▪ off the shelf database software …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • off the shelf — If a product is off the shelf, it can be used straightaway without any setting up …   The small dictionary of idiomes

  • off the shelf — ► off the shelf taken from existing stock, not designed or made to order. Main Entry: ↑shelf …   English terms dictionary

  • off-the-shelf — [ôf′thə shelf′] adj. designating commercial products that are ready for use without modification …   English World dictionary

  • off-the-shelf — off′ the shelf′ adj. 1) cvb readily available from merchandise in stock 2) cvb made according to a standardized format; ready made • Etymology: 1945–50 …   From formal English to slang

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