43% of Consumers Expect Inflation Impact; 39% Will Look to Dollar Stores for Savings
Numerator, a data and tech company serving the market research space, has published a 2022 Halloween Preview Report to identify how consumers plan to celebrate, shop and spend for the upcoming holiday. Overall, while concern regarding both COVID-19 and inflation continues to decline, consumers say they are less likely to attend typical Halloween celebrations and are planning spending cutbacks on Halloween decor, costumes and candy.
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Halloween 2022 Consumer Sentiment Findings:
- Plans for typical Halloween celebrations are down in 2022. More than three-quarters (77%) of consumers plan to celebrate Halloween this year, but many are making changes to their celebrations. Over half (53%) of consumers plan to hand out candy this year (down from 62% in previous years), 33% plan to trick-or-treat (down from 48%), 29% plan to visit a pumpkin patch (down from 40%), and 17% plan to attend or host a party (down from 28%).
- Chocolate reigns supreme for those handing out treats. Nearly three-quarters (73%) of consumers plan to buy candy for Halloween 2022. Of those candy buyers, 82% plan to buy chocolate and 63% plan to buy non-chocolate candy. Fewer than one in 10 (6%) plan to buy a healthy alternative to candy.
- Two in five Halloween shoppers plan to buy pumpkins. While candy is by far the most purchased Halloween category, nearly half of consumers (45%) plan to buy holiday decorations and 43% plan to buy pumpkins. Other planned Halloween purchases include snacks (38% of consumers), costumes & apparel (35%), alcoholic beverages (21%), arts & crafts supplies (18%) and desserts (17%).
- Most consumers plan to shop in-store for their Halloween items. 84% of consumers intend to shop in-person, with over half (54%) planning to shop at mass retailers, 42% at grocery stores, 29% at club stores, and 16% at drug stores.
- Online shoppers prefer Amazon for Halloween purchases. Nearly one in three shoppers (32%) plan to buy their Halloween items online, with 85% planning to shop at Amazon and 47% planning to shop at Walmart.com.
- Rising prices are concerning for consumers, but inflation impact is lower for Halloween than previous holidays. Fewer than half (43%) of consumers expect a moderate or significant impact due to inflation, the lowest percentage of any 2022 holiday. Among those consumers who expect an inflation impact:
- Consumers plan to reduce and reuse to offset inflation. Nearly 3 in 10 consumers (29%) expect to trade down to cheaper candy brands, 25% plan to reuse costumes from past years, and 17% say their Halloween costumes will be less extravagant this year to help reduce costs.
- Consumers will use everyday savings techniques to combat inflation. 66% of consumers plan to buy items on sale, 39% will shop at dollar or discount stores, 37% will use more coupons, and 33% will look for online deals.
- Inflation might not be as impactful as prior holidays, but some categories will see reduced spending. The top categories where consumers are planning spending cutbacks include holiday decorations (32% of consumers), apparel and costumes (29%), candy (28%), pumpkins (21%) and snacks (15%).
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