The majority of Canadians haven’t lost their connection with their local bank branch.

New research from global market research firm Mintel reveals that more than eight in 10 (86%) Canadian bank consumers have visited a branch in the past year, with one quarter (25%) saying they visit their local branch more than once a month on average.

The country’s oldest and youngest consumers are more likely than Canadians overall to be frequent visitors to their local branch as three in 10 (29%). Younger millennials (aged 24-31) and baby boomers (aged 54-72) say they visit their local branch more than once a month on average.

While Canadians young and old are frequenting their neighbourhood bank branch, their reasons for doing so are quite different. Older bank consumers aged 55+ are the most likely age group to visit their branch for financial planning advice (20% vs 16% of Canadians overall) and to buy investment products (16% vs 11% overall).

Meanwhile, younger bank consumers aged 18-24 are most likely to visit their bank branch for money transfers (33% vs 21% overall), to open an account (26% vs 13% overall) and to apply for a credit card (20% vs 9% overall).

Younger Canadians represent a prime target for bank branches as they are the most likely consumers to be increasing their visits. In fact, more than one quarter (28%) of bank consumers aged 18-24 say that they find themselves visiting their local branch more as they get older, compared to just 13% of consumers overall.

“The branch network can play a critical role in building relationships, enhancing trust, providing financial advice and easing the transition to digital channels,” says Sanjay Sharma, senior financial services analyst at Mintel, in a statement.

“We see that younger consumers are increasing the frequency of their visits to banks likely because they are relatively inexperienced in financial matters and have weaker credit histories, resulting in a desire to learn about their finances in-person. However, brands should avoid marginalizing older customers through mass reduction of human personnel as baby boomers are some of the most likely visitors of their bank branch as they are typically more affluent and seeking financial planning and investment advice,” he continues.

While more than half (54%) of bank consumers say they prefer to look online for answers about their financial accounts rather than visit a branch, many consumers agree that some things are better handled in person.

In fact, nearly three quarters (72%) of bank consumers agree that they would prefer to buy more complex products at a branch rather than online, and 68% say they would be more likely to buy new financial products/services at their local branch than through call centre sales.