Nevada Halloween spending projected to reach $171 million

Retailers across the Silver State are stocking up for a night of costumes, candy and frights. Nevada consumers are projected to spend $171.2 million on sugary sweets, scary decorations and dazzling costumes to celebrate Halloween this year, according to estimates by the Retail Association of Nevada (RAN). Nationally, an estimated $10.6 billion is expected to be spent for the holiday, according to a recent survey by the National Retail Federation (NRF). Overall consumer participation is expected to reached 69.0 percent in 2022, the highest participation rate since 2018.

“Nevada retailers are ready for an enthusiastic Halloween celebration with consumer participation at the highest rate since 2018,” said Bryan Wachter, Senior Vice President of the Retail Association of Nevada. “Retailers remain cautious about the upcoming holiday season. Consumer spending is not a full reflection of what retailers are facing with ongoing shortages, interest rate increases to battle inflation, and high cost of fuel for shipping goods.”

Consumers in Nevada will spend an estimated $57.5 million to dress up in costume this Halloween. Among the most popular costumes for adults this year are a witch, vampire, ghost and a pirate, according to the NRF survey. As for children’s costumes, dressing up as Spiderman is the most popular choice, followed by a princess, witch and a ghost. Additionally, a growing trend in recent years involves dressing up pets for the holiday. Top costumes for four-legged friends include a pumpkin, a hot dog, a bat and a bumblebee.

Home decorations are projected to be the second-highest grossing category in Nevada with $54.4 million in spending statewide. Nearly all celebrants (96 percent) plan to purchase candy, with total projected sales of $50.3 million, making sweets the third-highest revenue generator for Nevada retailers. Greeting cards come in fourth with a projected $9.0 million in sales.

The most-popular Halloween activity this year remains handing out candy (67 percent), up 1 percentage point from 2021. Other popular activities include decorating your home (51 percent), dressing up in costume (47 percent), carving pumpkins (44 percent) and throwing or attending a party (28 percent). Note, percentages do not add to 100 percent due to multiple responses.

According to the NRF, the top source of Halloween costume inspiration is an online search (36 percent). Other sources of inspiration include retail stores and costume shops (25 percent) and friends or family (19 percent). The most-popular shopping destinations for Halloween-related items are discount stores, with 40 percent of survey respondents indicating they plan to shop there, followed by specialty Halloween and costume stores (36 percent), online stores (31 percent), grocery stores and supermarkets (28 percent), department stores (25 percent) and craft or fabrics stores (13 percent). Note, percentages do not add to 100 percent due to multiple responses.

Source: National Retail Federation Halloween Consumer Spending Survey