Simon: Most holiday shoppers will visit malls

Indianapolis--More than eight in 10 (83%) of holiday shoppers will shop at the mall during the 2014 holiday season, and that percentage climbs to 89% of millennial shoppers age 18-33. According to the new "2014 Holiday Shopping Behavior Survey" from Simon, nearly nine in 10 (87%) respondents agree that "malls have the latest and hottest fashion and styles of the season."



Almost nine in 10 (87%) holiday shoppers say they need to browse stores for holiday gift ideas and four-fifths (79%) spend time browsing to find the "big" gifts they purchase during the holidays. Nearly four in five (78%) agree that "the wide variety of shopping options" is a major mall attraction, and 85% agree that "malls provide the variety of retail options I need when shopping for several different people." More than four-fifths of holiday shoppers (84%) agree that malls provide them ideas for holiday gifts.



Another major factor driving millennials to the mall this holiday season is that 81% of them (significantly higher than all other groups) agree that shopping at the mall helps avoid the risk of gifts not being delivered on time. That could be especially important because 20% of millennials say they will be shopping at the mall on Christmas Eve (also significantly higher than other generations).



Technology also plays an important role in the holiday shopping experience. Many shoppers, including 76% of millennials and 72%of Gen X, indicate they have purchased a gift at a store's mall location after browsing their website. More than half of holiday shoppers (53%) like stores or malls with apps that can make shopping easier. One-half of holiday shoppers (51%) plan to use their mobile devices while holiday shopping to compare prices. Two-thirds of millennials say they would post about a good holiday shopping experience on social media sites.