Costume dresses to fly off shelves this Halloween – NRF

27 Sep '14

3 min read

A survey by a US national retail body expects, more costumes than ever to fly off the shelves as Americans gear up to celebrate Halloween.

According to the National Retail Federation (NRF) survey, more than two-thirds of celebrants will buy Halloween costumes, the most in the survey’s 11-year history.

It says, the average person will spend $77.52 this Halloween, compared to $75.03 last year and total spending on Halloween this year is expected to touch $7.4 billion.

The survey reveals that US citizens will spend $2.8 billion on costumes overall, out of which $1.1 billion will be shelled out on children’s costumes and $1.4 billion on adult costumes.

Americans will also spend $350 million on costumes for their pets. Candy and greeting cards spend is expected to reach 2.2 billion, while $2 billion will be splurged on decorations.

71.1% of US citizens will hand out candy, while 46.7% will decorate their homes and yards and 45.8% will wear costume dresses. 33.4% will throw or attend a party, up from 30.9% last year.

Much like last year, the survey says, consumers will hit stores and the Internet early to get the first pick of costumes and candy.

According to the survey, 32.1% say they will start their Halloween shopping before the first of October, while 43.3 percent of celebrants will begin shopping in the first two weeks of October.

24.6% of those surveyed are expected to wait until the last minute and shop in the last two weeks of October.

While the bulk of Americans or 34.2% will look for costume inspiration online or in a retail store or costume shop, Pinterest is a growing source of inspiration this year.

The survey found 11.4 percent of Americans will turn to Pinterest for costume ideas, up from 9.3% last year.

Young adults are expected to drive the most Pinterest traffic. 21.2% of 18-24 year olds will turn to the popular site for ideas as will 21.0% of 25-34 year olds.

NRF CEO Matthew Shay says, “There’s no question that the variety of adult, child and even pet costumes now available has driven the demand and popularity of Halloween among consumers of all ages.

“And, with the holiday falling on a Friday this year, we fully expect there will be a record number of consumers taking to the streets, visiting haunted houses and throwing unforgettable celebrations”, he adds. (AR)

Fibre2fashion News Desk - India

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