Weekend shopping has changed.

For many Australians, a Saturday outing was once built around visiting department stores, browsing specialty retailers and enjoying lunch at a nearby café.

Today, many routine purchases happen online during the week.

So what makes people leave home on the weekend?

Increasingly, it is the experience.

Markets filled with local producers, boutique clothing stores, artisan bakeries, bookshops, antique dealers and homewares retailers continue to attract visitors because they offer something the internet cannot fully replicate.

People enjoy discovering something unexpected.

Children enjoy an ice cream.

Friends meet for coffee.

Visitors explore towns they may never have visited before.

The shopping bag is only part of the experience.

Australia's best shopping destinations are increasingly becoming social destinations.

Whether it is a country market, a coastal village, a suburban shopping strip or a revitalised town centre, successful retail precincts give people a reason to stay rather than simply buy.

The Times View

Online shopping delivers convenience. Weekend shopping delivers experiences. The most successful retail precincts of the future may be those that combine both, giving people reasons to spend time together as well as spend money.