In-person shopping making comeback as mall traffic picks up for holiday season

Shoppers swapping digital carts for mall crowds

Christmas shopping is in full swing and Americans are choosing to pack the malls this holiday season. FOX 10's Megan Spector checks out a mall in Tempe, where stores are packed and people are ready to spend.

TEMPE, Ariz. - The holiday shopping rush is in full swing, bringing a welcome turnaround for Arizona malls.

Big picture view:

Despite years of competition from online shopping, the stores are packed at Arizona Mills Mall, with the Christmas countdown on.

It was a busy day at the mall, and although online shopping has made it very quick and easy, shoppers still have their reasons for making a trip to the mall.

What they're saying:

Is it nostalgia?

"You get the energy. You kind of feel like it's the season," a shopper said. 

Or a need for instant gratification?

"I want it immediately. I don't want to have to wait for it at all."

Whatever it is, it’s filling malls with holiday shoppers.

"It's just better to just have the stuff on hand than waiting for it in the mail just to see if it fits at all," another said. "Being online is kind of boring. But being at the mall, there’s people around and just having fun – and good exercise too!"

Timeline:

Looking back to 1978, it can bring a familiar feeling of comfort and chaos.But shoppers described the overpopulated shopping centers as "an absolute madhouse" and "a real zoo."

The frenzy continued in 1989.

"We’ve got the bargain hunters. We have the people who are panicking, trying to get their last-minute gifts," shoppers had said.

Dig deeper:

It’s memories like those that continue to drive 2025 consumers to shop online.

"Maneuvering children through crowds of people is pretty difficult so it's quicker it's easier. It gets delivered to the house so normally it would be online," a shopper said. "We’re like the last generation who used to go to the mall and walk around and have fun and everything went online."

By the numbers:

At the start of December, the National Retail Federation (NRF) released their numbers about the record spending amount during Thanksgiving weekend.

Shopping online still seems to take first place, with 134.9 million shoppers. 

But in-store shopping was up by 3% from last year, with a total of 129.5 million people hitting the stores. So it’s clear there are still plenty of people making the trek to the mall.

Local perspective:

Other shoppers shared their reasons for choosing brick-and-mortar stores over e-commerce.

"It's personal and I like to support local versus shopping online—because you don't know where that's coming from," one shopper said.

"It's just better to just have the stuff on hand than waiting for it in the mail just to see if it fits at all," another shopper said.

"It’s better to come in person so we can take the stuff home the same day and we’ve got the right sizes," said a third shopper.

While there are advantages to online shopping too, many people enjoy the in-person experience, getting into the holiday spirit alongside other shoppers.

Map of Arizona Mills Mall in Tempe.