Holidays like Halloween are great for the economy (and enjoying festivities and treats!). Extra purchases like decorations, costumes, celebrations and of course, candy create a significant short-term boost that would not happen without the formal holiday.
But what’s the true cost of Halloween for Canadians? How significant is the impact?
We went to the Statista and Statistics Canada databases (provided to you by the Patrick Power Library), to find the spookiest and most surprising statistics about Halloween in Canada. Check out the stats, explore the databases and let us know if you find any other interesting facts by commenting below!
Decorations
The Jack-O-Lantern is a classic Halloween decoration, created by carving a pumpkin. In 2018, Canadian growers produced 75,855 metric tons of pumpkins which can be turned into decorations, pumpkin pies, or pumpkin spiced lattes! In addition to pumpkin décor and goodies, Canadians also spend an average of $43 on Halloween decorations each year. With just over 16 million people planning to purchase Halloween related items this year, the economic impact of these festivities is sure to give you ‘pumpkin’ to talk about (see what we did there?).
Celebrations
There are many ways to celebrate Halloween. If one of your favourite festivities is attending a costume party, you’re not alone! It has been noted by Statista that an average of $77 is spent by Canadians attending a party, with an additional average of $55 for drink purchases. If catching a scary movie is more your style, you’re also in good company- approximately 96,032,391 tickets are sold in Canada for all types of movies as of 2018.
Costumes
One of the best things about Halloween is dressing up, right? Must be- there are about 2,270 businesses that provide costume rental services in Canada as of June 2017. Whether you’re renting, purchasing or doing a DIY, the average amount of money spent on a costume in Canada is $52. Halloween makes a significant contribution to the estimated annual total value of vestments and costumes, which is $3.8 million in Canada.
Candy
Trick or treat! About 3.87 million children between the ages of five and fourteen trick or treat on Halloween across Canada. This promotes the sales of approximately $613.2 million worth of candy, cookies and other snack food items sold at large retailers across the nation. The average Canadian spends about $42 on candy each Halloween in Canada.
In Conclusion…
Halloween can have a big impact on the economy and the stores you’re purchasing from, due to the increased spending associated with the holiday. We encourage you to think about ways you could choose to shop local this Halloween. Maybe this could even save you a buck or two! We hope you stay safe and have a Spook-tacular Halloween this year!
If you’re curious and want help digging up some more stats, data, or information about Halloween, or any other subject, please connect with Research Help.
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