New research commissioned by Asda has found that families in the UK are spending more than £200 on Halloween celebrations, with many trying to outdo one another with elaborate decorations.
A poll of 2,000 adults found that 80 percent believe "spooky season" has become a real-life phenomenon. Traditional practices such as carving wonky pumpkins and poking holes in bedsheets have been replaced by tailor-made costumes, inflatable decorations, pumpkin-picking trips and themed parties.
The increasingly commercial aspects of the season have saddled families with a much higher bill, as they are paying an average of £209 more for the pleasure.
Halloween becomes a week-long event
A sizeable 42 percent of the group polled by Asda said their Halloweens were now lasting up to a week, while another 32 percent felt the cost of celebrating has got out of control. A majority of those polled – 56 percent – said the spending on their Halloween plans had become an unwelcome financial burden, with others saying they were competing with fellow Brits for the most elaborate displays.
Halloween decorating competitions, fairs and parties have all become more common in recent years, with the cost of associated events piling pressure on household budgets ahead of Christmas, when Brits spend an estimated average of £1,681.12.
With the advent of inflatable ghosts, giant garden skeletons, cobwebs, plastic instead of real pumpkins and orange lighting, homes are becoming increasingly adorned, and they are raising the spirit of competition. Almost a third of Asda's respondents – 31 percent – said they tried to outdo other families with their decorations.
Parents seek photo opportunities
Another 40 percent said they bought additional Halloween items for the aesthetics, believing they would look good in their seasonal photographs.
Pumpkin picking, a tradition once firmly confined to the US due to the vegetables' significant use during Thanksgiving, has also become popular in the UK. A significant 46 percent of respondents said they had taken their children to a pumpkin patch during the Halloween season. More than half – 51 percent – of those surveyed said they were at least in part tempted towards the activity on the promise of a good family photograph.
But 33 percent said the opportunity came about after they felt pressure to capture the perfect picture for social media. Those days out can also prove costly, with a quarter of those surveyed saying they had paid more for a pumpkin at a patch than they would expect to pay for one of the same size in a supermarket.
Costs add up for typical families
They forked over additional cash for food, hot drinks and parking. Asda's research found that typical families would spend up to £20 on decorating their homes, another £15 on pumpkins, £18 on Halloween-themed food and drink, and £20 on days out.
An Asda spokesman said: "Halloween has become a season rather than a night, and the costumes, decorations, treats and days out all add up." The supermarket said it had 1.25 million pumpkins arriving on its shelves for the season and was offering pumpkins at reduced prices as part of its latest price drop.
