Halloween Sales Expected To Generate $8 Billion This Year

Being spooky is apparently very big business. According to CNBC, retailers are expected to sell around $8 billion in holiday-oriented items this Halloween. This is up nearly 17.5 percent from last year, thanks to the estimated 170 million individuals who are expected to participate in this year’s celebration. In other words, you’d better stock up on jawbreakers and candy corn now.

“By the time Halloween rolls around each year it’s safe to say Americans have already spent two months preparing for one of the fastest-growing and most widely-loved holidays of the year,” National Retail Federation, one of the organizations behind the study, explained in a press release. “We expect retailers to stock their shelves well ahead of time.”

In a recent survey, researchers discovered that seven in 10 Americans intend to celebrate Halloween in one way or another. This mean that 71.5 percent of the country, up from 68.6 percent in 2011, will be doing something spooky on October 31. If sales figures are to be believed, a lot of people are going to be dressed as Mitt Romney and President Barack Obama this year.

According to The Baltimore Sun, over half of the people surveyed by BIGinsight plan to decorate their homes and/or yards this year. An estimated 45 percent of people are keen on dressing up this year, while 15 percent are interested in putting a kooky costume on an unsuspecting family pet. However, only a third are planning to take their kids trick or treating. I honestly thought that number would have been higher.

BIGinsight VP Phil Rist explained that Americans are ready to cut loose and spend a little this October. “There’s certainly pent-up demand for having some fun this year, and shoppers are planning to spend their hard-earned dollars on items that help them get into the Halloween spirit,” he said.

Are you planning to celebrate Halloween this year? How much do you intend to spend on costumes, candy, and decorations?