Finally, some not-so-spooky news for retailers: With Halloween on a Friday, many consumers are putting aside recession worries and snapping up Batman Joker masks, Sarah Palin glasses and Hannah Montana wigs.
At Hollywood Toys & Costumes this week, shopper Jo Kurtz was pushing a cart loaded with a vampire hunters kit, a coffin, plastic spiders and a necklace made of plastic garlic cloves.
"For some reason, I'm going all out this year," said Kurtz, a voice-over actress from Studio City who planned to spend $500 on the holiday, up from $100 last year. "I don't know -- I'm just having a really fun time and all my friends are doing it too. Anything is a good distraction from reality."
The gloomy reality -- a weak economy, plunging stock market and rising unemployment -- had retailers worried that consumers would remain tight with their spending for Halloween. But with a week to go, many stores said they were out of stock on popular items and were extending hours to accommodate crowds of shoppers.
"The numbers are up from last year already, and we haven't even gotten the rush yet," said Shawn Prochazka, whose Bizzy B stores sell Halloween costumes and accessories. "I'm beefing up my orders to compensate."
Halloween, a relatively inexpensive holiday to celebrate, has been growing in popularity and consumer spending in recent years, said Britt Beemer, chairman of consumer behavior firm America's Research Group.
According to a survey by the National Retail Federation, more people are expected to participate in Halloween festivities this year, with the average person spending $66.54.
"Though the economy is struggling, Halloween sales may be a bright spot for retailers this fall," said Tracy Mullin, president of the retail trade group. "Consumers, who have been anxious and uncertain for the past several months, may be looking at Halloween as an opportunity to forget the stresses of daily life and just have a little fun."
Erich Hamner, 45, who's been hit hard by the stock market in recent weeks, said he agreed.
"I'm a bit depressed about everything. My investment accounts, I'm watching it go down and down and down," he said Thursday while shopping for Halloween items at a Target in West Hollywood. "So this is an escape."
Hamner, who makes custom tiles and countertops, said he typically buys "a couple bags of candy and that's it" for Halloween.
