Business Studies is awesome.

To classify is to use criteria to sort and organise things ie. to place in classes.

These classificatory systems are used to define and refine our understanding of things. For example, imagine the many different ways to classify cars. You could start with brand. Then model. Then colour, engine power, electronic features... can you think of more?

Well, using such a system will enable you to define precisely the features of ONE particular car. 

There are over 2 million businesses in Australia and they are all VERY different. We need a classificatory system to be able to define and describe individual businesses with precision.

There are 4 main ways to classify businesses: