Big news — retail isn’t dead. Bricks-and-mortar establishments are alive and well.

The crazy online trend is slowing and people are getting back to engaging with their local retailers. That’s what a Google executive told the crowd at a recent small-business summit I attended and, given the data he shared, I believe him. Online companies are moving into bricks and mortar and people are using the internet to check things out first and then looking for an establishment near them. The big takeaway was that digital, particularly mobile, is driving modern retail and putting people back in stores.

Interestingly, on a national scale, big time e-commerce companies, as well as small boutique ones, are looking to purchase real property to expand their bottom line. That’s putting storefronts back into downtowns and Main Streets across the country.

There are several retailers that started as online only and are now expanding into bricks and mortar. The trend is the creation of more of a showroom model for retail that has a smaller footprint than in the past. Apparently, establishments that have the combination of a storefront and an online presence are most successful.

The sequence seems to go like this. People start by looking something up online, usually on their smartphone; they then look for a store near them where they can see it and talk with someone about it; they then purchase from that store rather than online. Why? It turns out that we still really like customer service.

Ultimately, the opportunity to have a shopkeeper personally, in real time, help us make our purchase is important and something we are willing to pay for. And apparently, according to several surveys from across the country, the best service is being offered at local businesses rather than at the big boxes.

This is all good news for downtown Amherst. There had been some concern over the last decade or so that we were losing big time potential tenants because we didn’t have a footprint large enough for them. That concern has faded in the wake of the modern trend toward showrooms and more experiential shopping.

We are lucky enough to have many retailers who offer a wide variety of goods and landlords who are continuing to think out of the box to help tenants. And even better yet, our retailers (and restaurateurs) have an online component so people can find them there first.

Digital is driving retail. It is critical to have a website, preferably well-suited to mobile devices, and good search engine optimization so your place jumps to the top of the list when “Googled.”

What we also have lots of in downtown Amherst retailers is good, old-fashioned customer service. Many of our shops have been in downtown for decades, operated by the same family. They built their businesses based on that philosophy well before the internet era and continue that long tradition. Fortunately, we’ve all realized what a valuable asset that was to our shopping experience and are trending back toward it.

Certainly, with the rise of the internet and new generations who have never lived in a world without it, shopping trends have shifted and we have had to adapt. But adapting we are.

From what I’m hearing at conferences and summits, this is all good news for bricks-and mortar-establishments and the new way of retail. We are coming to a valuable compromise that integrates use of the internet with the physical impact of bricks and mortar.

Please continue to shop local and visit your friends at the shops and restaurants in downtown Amherst!

Sarah la Cour, of Amherst, is executive director of the Amherst Business Improvement District.