Sweet Bags o' Money!

 

We are going to spend over $8.4 Billion on Halloween this year. This is the total for all spending on costumes for adults, children, and pets. Plus the parties, the candy and the pumpkins. 

Adult costumes are expected to outsell children’s costumes, with spending reaching $1.2 billion and $950 million, respectively. And pet owners will drop $350 million on costumes for their animals. 

 

10 Billion pieces of candy corn that will be produced this year. Candy corn was introduced by the Wunderlee Candy Company in the 1880s, before the Goelitz Candy Company (now Jelly Belly Candy Company) started making it in 1900. It has remained largely unchanged, except for the pace of its production: In the early years, its arduous creation process meant it was only available in the fall; now, with modern machinery, it’s available year-round.  

Americans will spend at least $3.1 billion on candy, according to the National Retail Federation (the National Confectioners Association puts the number slightly higher) with 71% of consumers surveyed saying they will be passing out some of the sweet stuff this year.

$400 Million: this is the worldwide box office revenues for all 10 movies in the Halloween franchise. The original, released in 1978, was shot for $300,000 in just 20 days and took in $47 million at the box office (equivalent to around $99.1 million today), making it the highest-grossing independent movie ever at the time.

$300 Million is the worth of the haunted house industry. There are 2,500 haunted attractions worldwide, according to NBC News, and prices for entry range from $15 to $40. The larger haunted houses can earn between $2 million and $3 million a season.

1.5 Billion pounds of pumpkin is produced each year in the U.S., making it one of the country’s most popular crops. At the Great Jack O’Lantern Blaze (pictured) in New York’s Van Cortlandt Manor, more than 7,000 hand-carved pumpkins line the grounds of the riverside estate.


Yes, we are setting a record for spending $8.4 Billion on Halloween this year. I wonder if Milton Hersey ever thought that his empire would become as big as it is today. 

Or if William Henry Atkinson the founder of the American Dental Association (established in 1859) would have thought that his organization would grow to more than 155,000 members.