TAMPA, Fla. — It's the last weekend you can check off the final items from your Christmas shopping lists. This year, several families are spending the holiday together after the pandemic kept many apart in 2020.
With families reunited, it brings back a little bit of the Christmas magic needed after a tough two years.
"I think this year is a little bit more upbeat for people," Lisa Clark, the owner of Shoreline Sugars Boutique, said. "And their joy is back maybe."
That joy has some feeling more generous with their holiday gifting. 20 percent of Americans plan to spend more this year compared to last.
Alongside the uptick in people choosing to spend more, there are also more people choosing not to spend at all. 4.9 percent more people are forgoing the gift-giving tradition this holiday season.
On the local business front, stores are seeing shoppers spend more in-store and less online.
"People are getting more personal gifts, they're spending their money wisely," Robynne Swanson, the owner of Red Hot Tiki Spicy Gourmet Market, explained. "I used to sell a lot of gift cards. This year I've sold very few gift cards and shipped less too."
Some local businesses, including Swanson, say this has been one of the best holiday shopping seasons they've seen.
Now if you still have some shopping to do, click the links below to see the holiday hours for local malls in Tampa Bay.