Retailers set for a happy Halloween
Candy sales are skyrocketing as consumers get ready to celebrate Halloween.
Sales of seasonal candy are up 29% to date in the second half of 2021 compared to the year-ago period and up 43% versus two years ago, according to Numerator, a data and tech company serving the market research space. Overall trips made for seasonal candy are up as well, up 19% over a year ago and 30% versus two years ago).
The new data is in line with a previous survey from Numerator, which found that only 16% of consumers expected COVID to have a significant impact on their Halloween plans versus 40% of consumers for Halloween 2020. In other findings, 21% of consumers said they plan to spend more on Halloween 2021 than pre-pandemic years, compared to 6% who said the same for Halloween 2020.
Other findings are below.
- Mass retailers look to capture the highest share of Halloween shopping. Nearly two-thirds (64%) of consumers plan to make their Halloween purchases at sass retailers.
- Grocery and drug stores show the largest declines in Halloween shopping intentions. Forty-four percent of consumers plan to buy their Halloween purchases at grocery stores (down 8.9 points from typical years) and 22% from drug stores (down 3.0 points).
- Convenience stores and delivery services are the two retail channels showing potential increases. Five percent of consumers plan to buy Halloween supplies from gas & convenience stores, up 0.7 points vs typical years. Third-party delivery services (e.g. Instacart, Doordash, etc.) show a 0.3 point growth among consumers.
[Read More: Halloween spending expected to hit all-time high of $10.4 billion]