Halloween has returned. At least that’s the impression I got from a survey of members of the National Costumers Association (NCA) on the week after Halloween.
The survey showed unequivocally that it was good year: 71% of respondents said costume sales were ‘much better than 2020’. And that’s not all – 55% said sales this year were ‘much better than 2019’, which was the last pre-COVID Halloween, and another 23% said sales were ‘somewhat better than 2019’.
“One of the best Halloweens we have had. It was comparable to 2013 Halloween for us, which was great,” wrote Gayle Vaartjes, owner of the Kostume Room in Wyoming, Michigan, in her survey response.
Vaartjes’ response was not unusual: “Great year — best ever, been in business 49 years,” wrote one survey respondent in Orange, California. And Larry Docktor, owner of Broadway Costumes & Theatrical Supply in Sacramento, California, wrote: “From a pure dollar perspective, it was 66% better than 2020 and 33% better than 2019.”
This year’s Halloween numbers look good for most NCA members, but I can only imagine how good they would have been without Spirit Halloween and their ilk, who appear vampire-like during the season – suck a little blood, and disappear. Our survey did not ask specifically about the effect of these pop-ups, but some respondents offered their feelings anyway.
To read the full article from our columnist, and the executive director of the National Costumers Association, Ed Avis, simply click here.
