Spooky spending season
Reporter: Liz Weinberg. Halloween celebrations are set to take off all around the globe this weekend on the last day of October, but at what cost?
The Australian Retail Council, in partnership with Roy Morgan, forecasts Halloween spending will reach $510 million in 2026. However, the proportion of Australians planning to celebrate is expected to fall from 21 percent in 2025 to 18 per cent this year.
Frankston costume shop owner, Tanya Bowyer, said Halloween remained the shop’s busiest period, but customers were increasingly mindful of their budgets.
When asked if Tanya had seen any patterns in buyers being more cost conscious when purchasing costumes this year, she acknowledged that she has noticed and has “made the extra effort to approach and help customers” on what best suits their spending limit.
Tanya has run her family owned business, Abracadabra Fancy Dress, for 35 years. She said “classic horror characters continued to attract customers, with Scream, Jason, Mike Myers, Chucky and Freddy Krueger” among popular choices. “Art the Clown from the Terrifier films has been a more recent favourite” she said.
She said Halloween was crucial to keeping the small business running, with the income helping sustain it throughout the year. “It means you hopefully get the money to last another year,” Tanya said.
With Halloween fast approaching tomorrow, Tanya has been booked and busy preparing costumes for another busy season, as Frankston’s long-standing costume shop continues to bring the community's spooky celebrations to life.
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