Halloween Spending Is On The Rise

People in my neighborhood started putting their Halloween decorations up in August. And now? A few days before the day of record? Homes are lit up with orange and purple lights. Elaborate monsters adorn the windows of three story homes. Graveyard headstones have appeared along stone pathways and imitation blood is adorning stairsteps.

It seems that after a few long Covid years of low participation for All Hallows Eve, paired with a nice bout of unseasonably warm weather and a national desire to be outside, Halloween 2022 is shaping up to be an avalanche of sales and revenue for all things related to the spooky holiday.

According to the National Retail Federation, Halloween spending is slated to reach pre-pandemic levels of around $10.6-billion. This exceed 2021’s spending of $10.1-billion.

“Halloween is an exciting time for many families, and that enthusiasm is reflected in the number of Americans who plan to celebrate the holiday this year,” NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay said. “As consumers continue to return to pre-pandemic behaviors, retailers are prepared to meet that demand and help make this holiday a fun and memorable one.”

What are they buying? Candy, pumpkins, decor and costumes. Costumes make the bulk of those buys at an estimated $2.9 billion, the highest amount since 2017. Folks with pets are also buying costumes for their animal best friends to the tune of $710 million.

Some 47% of people started their shopping in September and most of them were adults buying their own costumes. Kids costumes come in second to what adults are buying.

Of course, this is still far behind America’s $886-billion Christmas spend for 2021, but Halloween has certainly come a long way. Consider that in 2005, Americans spent $3-billion on the holiday, according to Statista. But now? Spirit Halloween alone opened 1,440 pop up stores since the beginning of October, the better to reach their core consumer in their local neighborhoods. They’ve perfected this seasonal All Hallows popup with stores that only open from early August to early November. And other stores, from Pottery Barn kids to Hanna Andersson, have been marketing Halloween clothing, pajamas and full costumes since mid summer.