Halloween goods are unsold like never before

Halloween supplies are plentiful, prices are stable, and there are many new items. But purchasing power is much slower than usual. Many sellers are in a bind.

A parent prioritizes choosing simple masks to buy for their children on this occasion - Photo: NHAT XUAN

Seller Because of the economic difficulties this year, many customers choose to skip Halloween (october 31) or decorate simply, instead focusing on Christmas.

Many new items, stable prices but too "unsold"

According to Tuoi Tre Online on October 30, stores specializing in selling Halloween decorations and toys on streets such as Tran Quang Khai, Nguyen Thi Minh Khai (District 1), Hai Ba Trung (District 3), Hai Thuong Lan Ong (District 5)... have displayed "spooky" products of various designs and types.

Accordingly, traditional decorative products such as pumpkin lanterns are sold for between 35,000 and 80,000 VND each. Items such as spider silk are also sold for around 40,000 VND. Masks, from horror to cute, range in price from 30,000 to 100,000 VND each.

In addition to familiar decorations and devil toys, this year many stores are selling masks of famous players such as Ronaldo, Messi... for about 35,000 VND each.

Even though Halloween is coming, the million-dollar "ghosts" at a store in Ho Chi Minh City still have no customers - Photo: NHAT XUAN

Ms. Tran Thao, owner of a shop on Hai Thuong Lan Ong Street, said that during this year’s holiday, she imported about 100 celebrity masks. Up to now, most of these goods have been sold, and these masks are mainly loved by boys.

However, according to Ms. Thao, revenue from these products is nothing compared to previous years.

Similarly, although she proactively reduced the amount of imported goods and did not import mannequin products worth millions of dong due to concerns about purchasing power during this year's Halloween festival, Ms. Doan Thi Huong, representative of Tra Huong decoration store (Thu Duc City, Ho Chi Minh City), was also quite worried when the number of customers was lower than expected, leading to the risk of unsold goods and inventory.

Best sellers this time are mainly simple, cheap products priced under 50,000 VND such as masks, pumpkin candy bowls... and the customers are mostly young people - Photo: NHAT XUAN

"Every year, shopping demand starts a week before the holiday, and every day is bustling, but this year it's completely deserted, even though we've tried to keep prices stable. After October 31, we'll have to put the goods in the warehouse," Ms. Huong said disappointedly.

Meanwhile, Mr. Nguyen Toan, owner of another store on Hai Thuong Lan Ong Street, said that this year sales have been slower than ever.

"Last year sales were down by half compared to their heyday. But this year sales are even slower and falling further," he lamented.

It's all because of the bad economy.

According to Ms. Thao, this year the economy is difficult, many places skip the Halloween season, no longer decorate or only decorate roughly, focusing on Christmas decorations.

Thanks to their low prices, masks printed with images of famous people are chosen by many customers on this occasion - Photo: NHAT XUAN

"This year's customers are mainly young people and children who are taken by their parents to shop for school festivals. Many schools often follow international schools in organizing this day for children.

Therefore, the best-selling items are costumes such as masks and candy bowls priced under 50,000 VND, the rest sell slowly," said Ms. Thao.

"Every year, cafes, bars, restaurants... often invest in and look for grand Halloween decorations such as million-dollar ghosts, big ghosts, to increase the "horror". However, this year, the number of customers has decreased significantly because many places have announced closures, or reduced business, so they are not interested in decorating" - Mr. Nguyen Toan said.

Many parents hesitate in choosing products for their children on Halloween - Photo: NHAT XUAN

According to Tuoi Tre Online , many stores selling decorations and costumes are quiet even during the peak holiday season. Halloween decorations and costumes are sold sporadically by retailers, mixed with Christmas products such as snowmen, pine trees, reindeer, etc.

Many stores even skip selling Halloween items and only display Christmas items, even though it's still nearly 2 months away.

Supermarkets, electronics stores... are having great promotions

On this occasion, a series of supermarkets are applying deep promotions. Specifically, from now until November 5, Lotte Mart supermarket is applying discounts with a common discount of 20 - 40% for a series of products such as Hubba Bubba gum reduced to 32,900 VND/box, Choco Rock chocolate reduced to 19,500 VND/package, salmon sushi reduced to 79,900 VND/portion, Tomyum chicken rice reduced to 29,900 VND/portion... Similarly, Emart, MM Mega Market... also said that they are applying promotions for many items on this occasion.

Many systems such as Dien Thoai Vui, Cellphones... also said they will deeply discount phone repair services, laptops, accessories... on Halloween.

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/hang-hoa-le-hoi-halloween-e-chua-tung-thay-20241030200616416.htm