Basically e-shopping is the process clients go through to purchase products or services over the Internet. An online shop, eshop, e-store, internet shop, webshop, webstore, online store, or virtual store evokes the physical analogy of buying products or services at a bricks-and-mortar retailer or in a shopping mall.

E-shopping pre-dates the internet, the IBM PC and Microsoft. It was started in the UK in 1979 by Michael Aldrich of Redifon Computers. Aldrich linked a customized 26" colour television to a real-time operation processing computer via a domestic telephone line and demonstrated online shopping.From 1980 onwards he sold his systems in the UK with considerable success.

The world's first recorded B2B online shopping plan was Thomson Holidays in March 1981.The world's first recorded B2C was Gateshead SIS/Tesco in May 1984.The world's first recorded online home shopper was Mrs Jane Snowball of Gateshead, England in May 1984.During the 1980s online shopping was also applied broadly in the UK and some parts of continental Europe by auto producers Peugeot-Talbot, Ford, Nissan and General Motors.All of these enterprises and others, particularly in Financial Services and manufacturing industry, used the Aldrich systems. These systems operated over the switched public network in dial-up and leased line modes. There was no broadband means.

In 1990 Tim Berners-Lee formated the first World Wide Web server and browser.In 1992 Charles Stack produced the first online book shop, Book Stacks Unlimited, two years before Jeff Bezos started Amazon.

In 1994 other advances took place, such as online banking and the opening of an e-pizza shop by Pizza Hut.During that same year, Netscape introduced SSL encryption of data transferred online, which has become compulsory for secure online shopping. In 1995 Amazon extended its online shopping, and in 1996 eBay appeared.