NILES, Ohio - This holiday season retail experts are predicting people will skip online shopping and head to brick and mortar stores for gifts. From small businesses to big box stores - shoppers are choosing to come in-person to avoid any hassle.

“You know that they’ve got it. It's right there you don't have to worry about shipping delays or somebody’s got some weather system coming through that might delay it,” Bob Phibbs, “The Retail Doctor” said. 

“They like to look and feel and try on and check the color and all that good stuff,” Joe Bell, Director of Communications at the Eastwood Mall said. 

Retail experts say the older shoppers tend to stick to their ways of shopping in-person but this year, the malls are seeing those younger shoppers come out too.

“The Gen Xers, the Gen Zers, they want to come out,” Bell said. “They’re kind of bucking the trend of online shopping because they want an experience when they’re out there shopping”

Bell said some of the biggest gift trends for this year are being driven by influencers.

“Some of these younger women are going big time for skin care products and things that would be considered personal body care,” Bell said about the shopping trends they’re seeing.  

“Shoppers want to spend the money. They’ve got a lot of money in the bank, they want to spend it and they want to have a lot of fun this holiday season,” Phibbs said. 

Along with the ease of picking gifts, people are also looking for something that online shopping can’t offer - spending time with friends.

“We have a lot of people who come out on Black Friday just because it's a tradition for them,” Bell said. 

Drawing crowds to the malls - putting old fashioned retail back at the top. 

“More new stores opened in 2023 then closed and that's a great sign for retail,” Phibbs said. “This is probably the most hopeful year we’ve had in 20 years of retail for the holiday season.”