Ever walk into a Target or a Walmart in the middle of the blistering summer heat, only to wonder what in the world they’re doing with Halloween decorations already out on display?
It’s an age-old question we’ve probably been asking ourselves with no real answer in sight. However, now we can know for sure. Experts are saying that it boils down to one thing: competitiveness.
Purdue University Retail Management Professor, Richard Feinberg, says, “The marketplace is so competitive that they can’t take a chance that people are going to spend their $50 elsewhere.”
Several big chain retailers like Target, Stop & Shop, and Walgreens, are among those who put their Halloween decorations out earlier than normal. The idea behind that is a way of gauging what the popular decoration items are for that year ahead of schedule. This then allows them to replenish stock that’s in high demand throughout the season.
Steven Kirn, executive director of the David F. Miller Center for Retailing Education and Research at the University of Florida, says that releasing Halloween decorations early will highly influence buyers to consider buying stuff throughout the season selling period, also known as the “Christmas creep.” Black Friday is a huge part of the debut for winter holiday decoration buying. Naturally, all of this is just to get shoppers in the stores sooner where they can spend more on the seasonal things like plastic pumpkins and reindeer-themed napkins.
Another influence, is making sure that the shelves are always stocked. More stores are keeping smaller inventories, based off what’s selling and what’s not, therefore it’s becoming normal for stores to fill their shelves with new items rather than old. Marlin Hutchens, the market vice president at Walgreens, says that since there’s not much storage space for items, it just all goes out on the display floor. This will also bring in the logistical factor too.
If you’re reading this and already feeling the Halloween holiday spirit, here’s a list of the retailers that are already selling their merchandise now:
- Target
- Stop & Shop
- Walmart
- Walgreens
- Home Depot
- Pier 1
- Kohl’s
- Sears
- Lowes
- JOANN
