Sure, everybody loves Halloween. But did you know they love the holiday to the tune of $8 billion in sales?
According to a study by Pronto.com, That’s how much Americans are planning to spend on Halloween this week, as holiday spending refuses to slow even amidst a down economy.
These spending figures are scarier than an Isis delay, Green Dot stock and Dodd-Frank regulations combined!
What Recession?
The average American household will spend just south of $80 on Halloween this weekend: that’s up from just north of $30 in 2003. Halloween spending took a dip in 2009, the first year the recession hit, but has been on a steady rise ever since. And while consumers everywhere may be looking to penny-pinch year round, they treat themselves on October 31: 70 percent said the economy won’t affect their Halloween plans.
I Want Candy. And Pumpkins.
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Eight percent of all U.S. sweets sales come from Halloween, during which Americans spend nearly $2 billion on candy a year. Nine billion kernels of candy corn are made for Halloween alone each year (although, when else does anyone eat them?) And the Pumpkin industry, such as it, produces 900 million pounds of everyone’s favorite gourd for Halloween as well.
Halloween Involvement
When asked how they will celebrate Halloween, 74 percent said by handing out candy, with around half also saying they’d decorate their house, carve a pumpkin and wear a costume. Just over one-third of people are going to host or attend a party, another third will go trick-or-treating and a surprising and mildly disturbing 15 percent said they’ll dress up their pet.
View more Halloween stats in the “Freakynomics” infographic below: if you dare.
