Inside Target’s push to become a Halloween destination

From Favorite Day Gummy Eyeballs to Snickers Ghoulish Green Fun-Size Bars, sweet treats are central to Target’s Halloween strategy.

The Minneapolis-based retailer said the spooky holiday is a traffic driver in October, one that it tries to boost with a novel assortment of store and national brands, value-focused messaging and, this year, a sassy, ghoulish Jack-o’-lantern named Lewis, Target’s Chief Food and Beverage Officer Rick Gomez told Winsight Grocery Business in an e-mail interview.

“We’re focused on shifting from being a retailer that sells food, to one who celebrates it,” Gomez said. “We know how important seasonal moments, like Halloween, are in our guests’ lives. We also know that our guests are looking for value now more than ever, so we’re focused on delivering a joyful assortment that is priced right and helps our guests celebrate the moment.”

That focus on value comes at a critical time for the retailer. In August, Target reported its first quarterly drop in earnings and lowered its sales forecast for the rest of the year as cash-strapped consumers continued to skip discretionary purchases. Food-and-beverage sales, however, rose in the low single digits during the quarter, with some significant growth in candy, snacks and beverages.

This Halloween, Target’s candy assortment starts at $2, with most seasonal food and drinks under $5. The retailer added more than 70 private-label food and beverage items for the holiday.

“Our only-at-Target brands, Good & Gather and Favorite Day, play a huge role in helping us deliver on that commitment by helping guests find delicious, high-quality seasonal treats at a lower cost,” Gomez said. “I’m really excited about what we’re doing this Halloween. We’ve introduced a handful of only-at-Target brand candy options that are unique to the national brands our guests know and love, such as milk chocolate with pop rocks, birthday cake flavored candy, sour candy gumballs and more that guests can enjoy at a low cost.

New Target Halloween offerings this season include Favorite Day Popping Potion Milk Chocolate Bars with Popping Candy, Dracula’s Dessert Filled Candy Straws and Mummy Melts Cherry & Blue Raspberry Cotton Candy, as well as allergen-conscious snacks and treats like Good & Gather Halloween Strawberry Fruit Strips and Halloween Unsweetened Apple Fruit Puree Pouches.

Good & Gather, one of three store brands in food and beverage, has been a powerhouse for Target, generating more than $3 billion in sales last year, Erica Thein, the retailer’s VP of food and beverage owned brands, said during a Groceryshop panel last month.

Target carries an assortment of Halloween activity kits. / Photo courtesy: Target

As during the winter holidays, Target is selling a robust selection of do-it-yourself food kits for Halloween. The activity kits, like Favorite Day’s Monster Clubhouse Cookie House Kit, Witches’ Tower Cookie House Kit and Decorate Your Own Halloween Monsters Hot Drink Bomb Kit “fuel trick-or-treating and bring the entire family together,” Gomez said.

Apple and pumpkin spice remain popular flavors in October but a new star is emerging, Gomez noted.

“We are offering a lot of maple-flavored items this year and will continue to offer trend-forward seasonal products into the holiday season,” he said.

Lewis, Target's viral Halloween superstar. / Photo courtesy: Target

But Target’s viral, breakout star this Halloween hasn’t been gummy eyeballs or a haunted house cookie decorating kit: It’s a (now sold-out), $180 8-foot-tall, shrouded Jack-o’-lantern decoration named Lewis that has floated his way into TikTok superstardom with sassy catchphrases like, “I am not a Jack-o’-lantern. My name is Lewis.”

Lewis even earned a writeup in The New York Times earlier this month.

“I love Lewis, and it’s clear from our guests’ response that I’m not alone,” Gomez said. “Lewis is a great example of what our best-in-class design team does to find ways to bring joy to our guests and offer them a delightful assortment.”