Close X
Wednesday, November 27, 2024
ADVT 
Life

Pandemic expected to hit Halloween sales

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 23 Sep, 2020 09:56 PM
  • Pandemic expected to hit Halloween sales

A Halloween night that falls on both a Saturday and a full moon would normally be ideal for candy, costume and decoration sales – and werewolves.

But experts say rising COVID-19 cases could put the kibosh on spooky festivities, curbing demand for supplies that usually deliver healthy profit margins for retailers from grocers to specialty pop-up stores.

Halloween sales could also serve as an indicator for what retailers might expect this Christmas, the largest shopping season of the year, experts say.

“I expect sales will be soft all around because of the lack of gatherings,” said Farla Efros, president of HRC Retail Advisory. “It will be scaled back, especially with restrictions coming back in place.”

Premier Doug Ford said earlier this month that Halloween will be a challenge, noting that he would prefer parents not take their children trick-or-treating.

“It just makes me nervous, kids going door-to-door,” he said.

However, Efros noted that “it’s not just children and trick-or-treating” driving Halloween sales.

“Adults normally spend a considerable amount of money,” she said. “But large gatherings and office Halloween parties just won’t happen this year.”

Retail analyst Bruce Winder said families and friends might plan their own “bubble Halloween” like a backyard celebration or scary movie night.

While people will still buy some candy, decorations and costumes, he said it likely won’t be as profitable as usual for retailers and candy manufacturers.

“Halloween is a really important category for a lot of retailers,” said Winder, the author of the book Retail Before, During and After COVID-19. “Outside of Christmas, it's the next biggest spend.”

He said candy is often used as a “loss leader” to drive traffic to a store, while decorations and costumes are profit-driving items with high margins.

Yet because consumers will be less likely to shop around for the best prices this year, Winder said some retailers might back off on price promotions to help offset COVID-19 costs.

Still, he said given Halloween inventory was likely ordered months ago in many cases, retailers are likely to “go for it as much as they can.”

“I don’t think retailers are going to change that much in terms of how they merchandise,” Winder said. “They’ll use Halloween as a bit of a barometer for the temperature of Canadian spending during the pandemic ahead of Christmas.”

Meanwhile, candy manufacturers are also bracing for a muted Halloween season.

Hershey Canada Inc. senior marketing manager Ola Machnowski said the maker of Halloween classics like Twizzlers, Jolly Ranchers and Reese's Peanut Butter Cups is expecting to see an impact from the pandemic.

“We are expecting a decline in sales,” she said, noting that the company has done some consumer insight work that points to a scaled-back Halloween.

Still, Machnowski said many Canadians are looking forward to celebrating in different ways, and will likely seek out treats and other supplies.

Yet she noted that it’s hard to predict what will happen over the coming weeks in terms of public health guidelines and restrictions.

“We’re trying to find the delicate balance between planning and being nimble,” Machnowski said. “We’ve been talking about Halloween probably since Easter, so it's very important to us.”

Meanwhile, Michael Ross, chief financial officer of discount chain Dollarama Inc., expressed caution regarding how sales of Halloween goods will develop this year.

Typically, Halloween is “a strong weight'” anchoring third-quarter sales for Dollarama – a mainstay for seasonal products including Halloween candy, decorations and costumes.

“We believe it will have a negative impact, but to what extent we don't know,” he said earlier this month of the pandemic’s impact on Halloween sales.

MORE Life ARTICLES

Smart Ways To Style Your Bottom Wear

Smart Ways To Style Your Bottom Wear
If you want to up your style game, just wearing trendy bottoms like boyfriend jeans and culottes is not the answer. Styling them ensures you stand out and look like a diva, say experts.

Smart Ways To Style Your Bottom Wear

How Porn Ruins Women's Intimate Experiences With Men

How Porn Ruins Women's Intimate Experiences With Men
Consuming porn instigates body-related insecurities in women that might not only reduce their interest in engaging in intimate activities with their partners but also negatively affect their arousal, a study suggests.

How Porn Ruins Women's Intimate Experiences With Men

Turn Monotonous Office Wear Into Party Ready Look

Turn Monotonous Office Wear Into Party Ready Look
What if you realise that its 6 p.m., and you have a dinner date with your college friends? You need a quick and easy way to take your work look from formal to exceptional.

Turn Monotonous Office Wear Into Party Ready Look

7 Must-Haves of a Strong Apology

What’s the difference between a true apology and just going through the motions?

7 Must-Haves of a Strong Apology

Schools reckon with social stress: 'I'm on my phone so much'

Teachers say they're seeing so much student anxiety that a national union newsletter labels it a "mental health tsunami."

Schools reckon with social stress: 'I'm on my phone so much'

Canada's oldest woman dies at 114, 'serene, content, grateful and positive'

Ellen "Dolly" Gibb was born in Winnipeg on April 25, 1905

Canada's oldest woman dies at 114, 'serene, content, grateful and positive'