Study: Brick-and-mortar Stores Scare up Halloween Sales

According to a survey from Retale, a location-based mobile platform, the majority of parents (83 percent) prefer to shop at brick-and-mortar retailers for Halloween costumes and decorations this year. Only 45 percent expect to buy Halloween items online. The study—fielded online—polled 700 parents with school-aged children and examined their shopping behavior and preferences for the 2015 Halloween season. “In addition to traditional store visits, Halloween shopping is now its own experience,” says Pat Dermody, president of Retale. “Brick-and-mortar businesses continue to thrive during the holiday as Halloween pop-up retailers showcase elaborate in-store displays to engage shoppers to try costumes and explore the latest decorations for their home.” Among those surveyed well over half (57 percent) anticipate spending more on Halloween this year than they did last year. While 64 percent of dads plan to increase their spending for the holiday, only 50 percent of mothers plan to do the same. In total, 37 percent of parents expect to spend the same amount as last year on Halloween, with only six percent saying they will spend less. “Shopping has rebounded this Halloween after seeing a lull in recent years,” says Dermody. “As the overall economic climate has improved, we’re seeing a boom in Halloween interest and spend. Though the two aren’t directly related, if you look at Halloween as a bellwether for December, holiday spending could also rise this year.” The study revealed that the majority of parents (54 percent) will spend $20-99 on their Halloween shopping, while 41 percent will budget more than $100 for the holiday. Only five percent of parents plan to limit spending to less than $20. When asked when they shop for Halloween, close to half of parents (42 percent) said that they shop the first two weeks of October; however, more than a third (38 percent) start shopping before October. More than one in 10 (13 percent) start shopping two weeks prior to the holiday, while seven percent of parents hold off on Halloween shopping until a week before the day. Almost half of parents surveyed (46 percent) will spend most of their Halloween budget on costumes this year, with just over a third (36 percent) putting their funds towards candy. Only 17 percent of parents are allocating spending for home décor. Among all parents, millennials (51 percent) are the heaviest purchasers of costumes, while adults 55 years and older (58 percent) are planning to buy the most candy. When questioned on how they shop for candy for the holiday, 71 percent said they shop at a mass merchandiser, followed by grocery stores (11 percent), dollar stores (nine percent) and drug stores (six percent).