October 30, 2015
As the scariest day of the year approaches, it looks like budget-conscious consumers have grown weary about more than just the spooky happenings that may take place on Oct. 31; they have actually taken a fearful attitude toward Halloween spending itself.
According to a new survey by American Consumer Credit Counseling, nearly half (47 percent) of the thrifty shoppers it surveyed said they planned to spend nothing on Halloween items this year, while 33 percent said they expected to spend less than $50, which falls well below the projected average.
The results are a bit surprising considering Halloween has a long history of drumming up a significant amount of holiday spending among consumers and boosting October commerce.
The National Retail Federation expects U.S. Halloween sales to hit $6.9 billion in 2015, with approximately 157 million fright-loving Americans spending an average of $74 per person in Halloween holiday shopping.
Many consumers care more about their budgets than Halloween spending.
Even these numbers are taking a slight dip from last year’s spending results, where a record-breaking number of consumers scared up an average of $77.52 to spend on Halloween, reaching a total of $7.4 billion.
But this year’s consumers, who have their budgets rather than ghoulish spending at the top of mind, are taking a different approach.
“While Americans spend billions of dollars on Halloween every year, this survey shows that budget-conscious consumers are cautious about the amount of money they plan to spend on Halloween items this year,” Steve Trumble, American Consumer Credit Counseling’s President and CEO, said in a press release. “Even relatively small Halloween costs can add up, so it is surprising that the majority of consumers do not include Halloween expenses in their budget.”
Nearly 31 percent of consumers surveyed in the American Consumer Credit Counseling’s poll planned to utilize Do-It-Yourself Halloween costumes and decorations this year to keep Halloween expenses at bay.
