The dust has settled on Halloween 2017 with retailers and suppliers now looking forward to Christmas and New Year. PWW spoke to Gail Brocklebank, owner of Party Planet in Lincoln, to find out how the spooky season was for her.
Steady As She Goes
“We had a busy but steady (takings wise) Halloween, we were overall 6% down on last year. I think there will come a time when it reaches a plateau, and I think that is the case when it’s in the week.”
Planning In Advance
“We find that people shop in stages, we have the people that come in early September for the big animated props, then come the people looking for decorations and a decent costume, then the week leading up to Halloween is all about special fx tattoos and face paints. On the day itself we sell nothing but contacts, blood, face paint and fangs to everyone who has left it to the last minute!”
Here Come The Clowns
“Clowns were popular again, especially for kids. Day of the Dead is still popular as well. I think people are moving away from costumes and are getting really creative with accessories. We could have sold a lot more of this year, I’m definitely ordering more accessories than costumes for 2018.”
The Halloween Buzz
“I would like to say we will increase sales tenfold next year but that’s probably the same as Del Boy saying this time next year we will be millionaires! I would think it will be about the same, although we will be updating what we have in stock, everyone wants to see new and exciting things! For us though, we all look forward to Halloween and love the buzz, it still remains our favourite time of the year.”
