NRF: Halloween spending to hit $11.6 billion, most popular costumes are…

Total spending on Halloweeen candy is expected to reach $3.5 billion.

Early demand for ghouls, ghosts and other Halloween items continues to grow.

Early Halloween shopping is on the rise, with 47% of consumers beginning their shopping before October, up from 37% five years ago and 32% in 2014, according to the National Retail Federation’s annual survey s conducted by Prosper Insights & Analytics. 

Those taking part in the spooky season plan to spend an average of $103.63, about $4.62 less than last year’s record of $108.24. Total Halloween spending is expected to reach $11.6 billion, after last year’s record-setting $12.2 billion. 

Discount stores (37%) remain the top destination to buy Halloween items, followed by specialty Halloween/costume stores (33%) and online (33%). Across spending categories, candy remains the most popular with total spending expected to reach $3.5 billion. Total spending on decorations is expected to hit $3.8 billion, followed by costumes ($3.8 billion) and greeting cards ($0.5 billion).

“Interest in early Halloween shopping continues to be dominated by the 25-34 age group, with 56% of shoppers in this group kicking off their shopping before October,” Prosper executive VP of strategy Phil Rist said. “Their love of the holiday is a key factor in this trend, with nearly half of this segment sharing that they plan to shop early because Halloween is their favorite holiday.”

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