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Alicia Dutrow and her fiancé, Jurgen Qatipi, both of Gallitzin, go on a Halloween costume hunt for Spirit Halloween at the Logan Valley Mall on October 1. Mirror photo by Patrick Waksmunski
It seems ghosts and elves of all ages love candy – especially with peanut butter – about as much as they love to dress up for Halloween, as consumer spending for the next holiday is expected to exceed $ 10 billion. of dollars.
Plans to celebrate Halloween are up this year from last year and are near pre-pandemic levels, according to the National Retail Federation’s annual survey conducted by Prosper Insights & Analytics.
“Americans plan to spend more than ever to make this Halloween unforgettable,” Federation president and CEO Matthew Shay said in a statement. “Retailers have put in place a number of measures, such as introducing Halloween products earlier than usual, to ensure their shelves are stocked with seasonal candy, decorations and more. articles before this important holiday. “
At Blair Candy Co. in Altoona, Halloween is a big holiday, in fact, it’s approaching Easter when it comes to sales, said Pam Macharola, Director of Ecommerce.
“Halloween is very big and the last five years have exceeded our expectations” Macharola said, noting that Easter remains the No.1 candy festival.
The rise in the price of candy has not deterred sales, she said.
“You might think so, but no. Candy is a comfort food and when people want it, they will pay the price ”, Macharola said.
Grocery stores in the area are also seeing increased demand for Halloween candy, especially in the days leading up to the holidays.
“In 2020, more than a third of all our Halloween candy sales took place in the week leading up to Halloween” said Luke Dreese, director of non-food products for Martin’s Food Markets and Giant Food Stores. “We expect that to be the case again this year as families look to celebrate after perhaps missing last year.”
Dreese said the number one candy sale in stores last Halloween was Reese’s Snack Size, followed by Kit Kat and Snickers.
“The size of Reese’s pumpkin snacks was also the number one season-specific candy last year,” he said. “We expect the peanut butter trend to continue this year.”
But at Tyrone-based Gardners Candies, Halloween isn’t such a big party.
“It’s more of a holiday of unwanted candy like penny candy” said President Joe DeStadio.
The holidays seem to be geared towards children, as households with children are estimated to spend more than double the amount of households without children – $ 149.69 versus $ 73.57 – on Halloween items.
The number of Americans planning to decorate for Halloween is on par with last year’s spike in interest, with spending on decorations continuing to climb to $ 3.17 billion from $ 2.59 billion last year. according to the national survey.
Total spending on costumes is the highest since 2017, at $ 3.32 billion.
Spirit Halloween has a store in Sears’ former location in the Logan Valley Mall and markets itself as the largest Halloween specialty retailer in the world.
“We come together around enthusiasts all over the world to organize every aspect of Halloween flawlessly and hauntingly” said spokeswoman Marisa Uzzolino.
“Our extensive collection includes classics from ‘Beetlejuice’, devilish sets from ‘The Haunted Mansion’ and our exclusive line of breathtaking animatronics. Our 1,425 outlets, 3% more than last year, have 35,000 seasonal employees and are ready to follow all local and national guidelines so that everyone can mark their Halloween favorites ”, she said.
This year, consumer spending on Halloween-related items is expected to hit an all-time high of $ 10.14 billion, from $ 8.05 billion in 2020, according to the National Retail Federation survey.
It is estimated that 65% of Americans plan to celebrate Halloween or participate in Halloween activities this year, up from 58% in 2020 and comparable to 68% in 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the results. of the investigation. Households with children are much more likely to celebrate Halloween – 82% – than those without – 55%.
Survey results also show that consumers plan to celebrate the holidays by handing out candy (66%) and decorating their homes (52%). Other ways to celebrate are by dressing up, carving pumpkins, and organizing or attending a party.
With more Americans celebrating Halloween this year, average spending is also expected to rise. On average, consumers plan to spend $ 102.74 on costumes, candies, decorations, and greeting cards – $ 10 more than they planned to spend last year.
“This year in particular, we see a focus on family Halloween spending,” Prosper Insights executive vice president of strategy Phil Rist said in a statement.
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