Making the Holiday Shopping Experience More Enjoyable

(ARA) - Love it or hate it, holiday shopping at the mall is an activity most Americans will participate in between now and the end of the year. For some, the jingling of Santa’s bells, twinkling lights adorning their favorite stores and the bustling of cheerful crowds makes it the perfect place to get into the holiday spirit. But along with the merriment comes a lot of frustration.

Auntie Anne’s Pretzels, the international hand-rolled soft pretzel chain located primarily in malls, recently surveyed consumers on their attitudes toward holiday shopping to understand shopping habits, get at what shoppers enjoy most and least about the mall experience, and to define what would make a “perfect day at the mall.”

Turns out among those polled, 85 percent plan to shop at the mall this holiday season. The things these shoppers like best about the experience are the festive decorations (43 percent), holiday music (34 percent) and extended shopping hours (31 percent). As for what they like the least, 73 percent of shoppers said the crowds, 54 percent said driving to and from the mall, 47 percent said finding a parking spot and 19 percent said “getting over the financial hangover.”

It should come as no surprise that the survey also found that nearly half of women polled consider holiday music one of their favorite aspects of shopping at the mall, while one in eight men said it stresses them out. Also, twice as many women as men said having their child’s picture taken with Santa is one of their favorite mall features. And when it comes to the perfect shopping partner, men listed a spouse or significant other as their number one choice, while the ladies ditched their partners and ranked a family member or friend as the perfect shopping companion.

The poll also shows some major differences in attitudes towards holiday shopping from region to region. Shoppers in the Northeast get into the holiday spirit at the mall more than any other part of the United States. Thirty-seven percent of Northeastern respondents say they will visit the mall at least five times during the holiday season, 41 percent say they enjoy the holiday music played at the mall and 57 percent list festive decorations among their favorite aspects of the mall shopping experience.

At the other end of the spectrum are Midwestern shoppers. Only 28 percent of them expect to make five or more trips to the mall, 27 percent say they enjoy the music and just 33 percent list holiday decorations as their favorite aspect of the experience.

Shoppers in the South are more bothered about driving to the mall during the holiday shopping season than in any other region. Their biggest complaints — traffic and finding a parking spot.

What can shopping Scrooges do to cheer themselves up? According to those surveyed, it’s taking a well-deserved break to get a quick bite to eat like a freshly baked Auntie Anne’s hand-rolled soft pretzel. One in eight people polled said their favorite part about the holiday mall experience is rewarding themselves with a satisfying snack.

Courtesy of ARAcontent