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What's the difference between 支{し}店{てん} and 支{し}局{きょく}?
They both share the definition of "branch office" but 支店 uses the kanji for store, while 支局 uses the kanji for bureau or department.
Would 支店 be more appropriate for venues that sell something, and 支局 for venues that are related to office work?
Or are they fully interchangeable?
They are basically the same in the sense that they refer to branches, but not interchangeable.
The difference is simply whether or not they use 局 or 店 in naming departments of the organization. As the following definition says 局 is mostly used by media-related companies.
新聞社・放送局などで、本社・本局の管理のもとに各地に置かれ、その地域の業務を取り扱う局。
There are also 支社 or 支部. Technically 支社 must be independently registered (according to this). 支部 is yet another 'branch office'. Which one is used is ultimately the choice of the company.
Kind of related:
