Published: October 23, 2009 07:17 pm      

Haunted Halloween shoppers find thriller deals

EDMOND — Substituting creativity for purchasing power, Edmond residents have been scanning the racks of local resale shops for costume pieces. Anyone wearing an assembled costume on Halloween will be on the cutting edge of Halloween fashion, following a national trend of shoppers whose budgets have run into a buzz saw.

According to a survey by the National Federation of Retailers, nearly one-third of people planning to wear costumes this year will either make a costume or reuse last year’s. That’s just one of the ways the nation’s Halloween shoppers plan to cut costs.

Halloween shoppers are expected to spend an average of $20.75 on costumes, including those for children and pets, $17.99 on candy, $14.54 on decorations and $3.02 on greeting cards, about 15 percent less overall than they spent in 2008. The survey shows young adults, ages 18-24, plan an even greater scale-back in spending.

Helen Smith, manager of HOPEfully Yours, 908 N. Broadway, said they have a rack of ready-made Halloween costumes, with the selection constantly changing. Smith said she gets costumes in every day through donations to the HOPE Center at 1251 N. Broadway. “As soon as we put them out, they’re gone,” she reported.

Most Halloween shoppers, however, assemble costumes by browsing the whole store. Smith said one shopper bought a wedding dress for a Bride of Frankenstein costume. Other shoppers have been looking for costume pieces they need to attend ugly Christmas sweater and red hat Halloween parties. A youth pastor, she said, bought a child’s dragon costume and wore it as a shirt.

“We’re busier than we were last year. More people are shopping resale than ever before. Our numbers sure show it,” Smith said.

Jessica Prochazkova, manager of Goodwill Industries, 48 E. 15 St., said she also has seen a lot of people coming in to create their own costumes. She has noticed a high demand for clothing to wear to ’80s prom theme parties.

Hot items this year, she said, include leisure suits and anything with sequins. Mothers and grandmothers have been designing their own Strawberry Shortcake costumes for little girls. Prochazkova said she’s also selling overalls, cowboy boots and cowboy hats.

Louellen Schlegel, head cashier at the EARC Thrift Shop, 92 E. 15th St., said she has sold quite a few ready-made costumes, but still has a few for ages 6 and older.

A change she said she has noticed this year is that scary costumes are not as popular as they had been in previous years. Instead, she has seen more people buying tie-dye T-shirts, Hannah Montana and Elvis Presley look-alike clothing, and scarecrow costume pieces.

“We still have scary masks. They’re not buying those,” Schlegel said.

All three store managers said they have costumes available for under $10.



ktoppins@edmondsun.com |

341-2121, ext. 112