Trick or Treat?

My house has been a buzz lately. There is only one topic of conversation between my housemates and that is....

HALLOWEEN.

My housemates are beyond excited to experience an American Halloween. They assure me that Halloween is no where as big of deal in Australia as it is here and cannot wait to experience a stereotypical Halloween. They each have purchased 2 - 3 different costumes, bottles of fake blood, and thoroughly mapped out their entire week of Halloween festivities.

However, it isn't just the bright-eyed Aussies that are excited about Halloween, it's pretty much everyone.

There is no denying it -- Americans LOVE Halloween.

But just how much do we love this fall holiday? Here are some Halloween statistics:

• Halloween is 2nd largest commercial holiday in the US. 
• 64% of American adults celebrate Halloween. 
• Americans spend close to $7 billion on Halloween. 
• $1.2 billion spent on adult costumes
• $950 million spent on children's costumes
• $350 million spent on pet costumes 
• 93.7% of Halloween shoppers will buy candy. 

Plus check out this interesting infographic: 

How did American Halloween get to be this way?

Halloween in the 1960s

Even though Halloween started in the UK, Halloween started to become more popular in the early 20th Century in the USA when people realized it could be celebrated by different immigrant communities. Whole towns could come together as people started to recognize it as an American holiday. In the 1950s and 1960s, the baby boomers helped Halloween gain more popularity with the rise of suburbs. Then with the rise of horror films, teenagers and young adults became more involved with the holiday and raucous parties starting happening. Marketers and retailers have since taken hold of this holiday and capitalized on creating merchandise for decorating, costumes, and candy.

Learn more about Halloween history here.

Commercialized Halloween is spreading around the world now thanks to globalization. Halloween started in France in 1997 as a marketing ploy welcomed by businesses who wanted to make profit before Christmas as well as consumers who wanted something fun to do in a struggling economy.

Halloween in France

It is also gaining popularity in China and Indonesia as a fun excuse to dress up and throw costume parties. The combination of advertising, folklore, TV shows and movies have fueled acceptance of this holiday.

Halloween in China

Even though people may argue that Halloween exists because it is fun. However, from my perspective, Halloween is a result of great marketing and smart retailers. With the potential to make profits off costumes, decorations, and candy, marketers have taken advantage of an old (and religious!) holiday and made it appealing for kids, teenagers, and adults.

However, I am not complaining about the mind games these marketers have done to me. Without Halloween, the animals in my family would not have these cute but extremely overpriced costumes.

My dog, my aunt's dog, and my rabbit in their Halloween costumes