What is the difference between shopping and competitive limited shopping ?

Terms used in the question i.e "Shopping" and "Competitive Limited Shopping" may be used with different meanings from organization to organization, and there cannot be a precise answer. However, as I understand "Shopping" denotes to buying from a single source without any competitive bidding etc. There may be many reasons to resort to this kind of procurement: low value, proprietary material/services, urgency, contractual obligations etc etc. The term "Competitive Limited Shopping" implies a method of procurement where bids are collected from a limited number of known suppliers and contract is awarded after comparing the bids.

First of all I would like to argue with the term "shopping" According to me this is a term must be used only for consumers and not for purchasing / procurement / supply chain professionals.

To the point: "Shopping" is a term used to determine the open process of purchasing, addressing to several suppliers (and in any case more than 3). It's usually about common goods / commodities / services with no special specs or requirements and in low value. In this case no supplier evaluation is required and only bidding comparison will take place. In "shopping" ads, publishing, posting may apply.

On the other hand "competitive limited shopping" is the process of purchasing where the purchaser is addressing to specific suppliers and this may be because: a) of singularity of the product b) pre-qualified supplier c) low value of the product/service etc. In case of "competitive limited shopping" no ads or publicity take place.

Shopping is a procurement method based on comparing price quotations obtained from several suppliers. Requests for quotations shall indicate the description and quantity of the goods, as well as desired delivery time and place.Competitive limited shopping is a direct invitation without open advertisement where there are limited number of suppliers.