Only 47.1% visitors go to mall to shop, reveals study

More than half of the people visiting shopping malls in the city do so for reasons other than shopping, according to a recent study by the Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay.

More than half of the people visiting shopping malls in the city do so for reasons other than shopping, according to a recent study by the Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay. Only 47.1% of the respondents visiting malls were there to shop, found the study published in the journal Transportation Research Part F: Traffic Psychology and Behaviour.

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A fifth of mall-goers (21.5%) go there for leisure, the study showed. One out eight visitors (12.5%) go there to watch movies and one out of nine (9.2%) visit restaurants. The study also found that about 30% of mall-goers prefer taking their cars.

Researchers from the civil engineering department surveyed 650 visitors in five shopping malls across the city. They used a questionnaire to gather information about the visitors’ age, gender, occupation, income, car ownership and possession of a driving license.

The study then used two statistical models to understand how each of these factors influences the visitors’ decision to come to a shopping mall, said Gopal Patil, professor, department of civil engineering, and the main author of the study.

“It is important to understand how people make travel-related choices for shopping mall trips. This information can help transport planners and decision-makers to address the needs of travellers for these trips,” said Patil, who was assisted by two of his students in the survey.