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Who spends $300 on Halloween?
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By Peggy Mackenzie-The Toronto Star-
Never underestimate the power of Halloween. That’s the lesson I learned when my son, age five, playing in a sandbox with a new kid, said he was going to be a pirate for Halloween. Without hesitation, the kid replied that he was going to be Batman. It was August.
Halloween – free candy, strangers poised to welcome them into their homes, costumes, and the thrill of being out in the dark – a child’s paradise. It’s no wonder that kids so vividly recall an event that took place ten months in the past and eagerly plan for its return.
For parents, it can easily turn into a fiscal nightmare. A survey by thrift chain, Value Village, found that shoppers in Canada and the United States expect to spend $300 this year. While I find that number hard to believe, Statistics Canada said we spent $1.15 billion for fright night in 2006. Halloween now ranks as the third most important seasonal category behind Christmas and summer backyard living for Canadian Tire.
With 3.7 million prime trick or treaters (ages 5 to 14 years old), according to Statistics Canada, maybe I should be spending a bit more on candy this year. Last year Canadians spent $322 million in the month of October for candy, confectionery and snack food sales, an increase of $64 million over average monthly sales. That’s a lot of candy. In addition to leafing through the flyers this weekend, I’ll be checking the smartcanucks forum to see if anyone posts a good candy deal in my area. I never buy candy too far ahead, partly because of the higher price, more because of the temptation to eat it. I also buy candy I wanted to eat as a child and not the cheap stuff my mom handed out.
Costumes are not the source of anticipation and angst as they once were, thanks to the teen years. My daughter is heading to the thrift shops to augment her costume and my son will throw something together last minute as usual from our own junk piles. The proudest costume moment for me is his Robin Hood costume, age 4. I failed my Grade 8 Home Economics project, but I sewed a tunic from a $3 bolt of fabric and pinned the Robin Hood flour logo to a party hat. Brown pants and turtle neck completed the ensemble and his toy bow and arrows.
As for decorations, if this is your first year handing out candy, wait to deck your house with boughs of zombies for Halloween 2012. The deeply discounted November sales are worth the wait. A carved pumpkin is the only crucial decoration you need plus that large bowl of candy.
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