Halloween orders plummeted! A group of sellers are losing money

Halloween product sales are experiencing a mixed bag.

The annual Halloween carnival is about to begin, and consumers are placing orders enthusiastically. However, the sales of cross-border sellers' products vary. Some sellers sell more than 20,000 orders per month, while others slash prices but still cannot save sales.

Halloween sales are "silent"! Sellers: This year is not as good as last year

Many sellers who sell seasonal products such as Halloween have a very simple starting point: work hard for a few months, earn enough money for a year, and then you can "lay your head" for the rest of the time...

From observation, a group of cross-border sellers have successfully realized this wish.

If you search for the keyword "Halloween" on Amazon , you will find that the sales of many Halloween products are very high. One of them is a giant triangular spider web that costs about US$30, with monthly sales exceeding 20,000 units; and there is also a bat wall decoration that costs US$9.6, with monthly sales exceeding 50,000 units.

In addition to Amazon, many Halloween products on platforms such as TikTok, eBay, and Temu are selling well. "Especially the top sellers, who are making a lot of money." An industry insider said that many veteran players are well versed in Halloween gameplay, and this year's product sales continue to be high.

Some are happy while others are sad, but some mid-level and tail-end players did not perform well.

According to feedback from a large number of sellers, the traffic of Halloween products this year is very average, obviously not as good as last year. Due to misjudgment of the situation, it is estimated that only a small profit will be made in the end. Another group of sellers said that there is a high probability of loss:

There are less than 20 days left until Halloween , and sales of light strings have yet to pick up.

Sales are bad now, and they probably won’t be any better in the future.

The new links that were added this year have not sold well.

I have too much inventory, and now I feel worried when I think about it.

The performance of the old links is also average.

There is still a wave of returns after Halloween, and profits are worrying.

…

Seller Xiao Zhang said that Halloween sales are now entirely supported by old links, and orders can be placed naturally without advertising, but the performance of new products is very poor, and it is estimated that it will be difficult to clear the stock in the end. Due to the drag of new products, it is expected that the overall profit of Halloween products this year will be much lower than last year.

The seller Xiao Li said that the product prices were already very low in the early stages, but many peers were competing at low prices and the product rankings could not be improved. Now that sales have improved slightly, it is estimated that they can only break even in the end.

It is understood that the sales of many new links this year are not good, and even some old links have seen a "big drop". With the decline in sales of Halloween products, it is predicted that the relevant sellers will end up losing money. Due to global inflation and the economic crisis, a group of low-income families are in trouble and have to reduce Halloween costs. This is also one of the important reasons why some Halloween product sellers have suffered a "Waterloo".

Consumer Halloween shopping trends: less spending, more buying cheaper products

Halloween product sales are showing a mixed trend, and sellers clearly feel that there are some new situations in this year's Halloween. What are the shopping trends for Halloween in 2024? What are the new changes? Sellers may wish to take a look at the following agency's forecast data and analysis.

Costumes, decorations and candies have always been the main drivers of Halloween spending , and this year is no exception. It is expected that the average American consumer will spend about $103.63 this year. In terms of commodity consumption, consumers will spend $3.5 billion on candies , $3.8 billion on decorations , $ 3.8 billion on costumes , and $500 million on greeting cards.

In terms of clothing, for children, popular costumes include Spiderman, ghosts, princesses, witches and superheroes. The first choice for adults is witches, followed by vampires, cats, Batman and pirates. In addition , consumers are also keen to buy pet clothing products with pumpkins, hot dogs, bats, ghosts and bumblebees .

Consistent with last year, total spending on adult apparel is expected to reach $1.8 billion, while spending on children’s apparel is expected to reach $1.3 billion, according to NRF . Love for pet apparel also remains steady, expected to reach $700 million.

According to Google data, the most popular Halloween decoration this year is the 12 Foot Skeleton . In addition, some previously popular elements are still popular. The following is a detailed list:

12 Foot Skeleton

Black Halloween Tree

Ghost

Fog Machine

Jack-O-Lantern

Spider Webs

Skulls

Floating Candles

Black Cat

Bats

Halloween Graveyards

Light Up Pumpkins

Pumpkin Arch

Terracotta Pumpkin

Scarecrows

As consumer shopping habits change, many new consumption changes have emerged this Halloween:

1. Consumers shop in advance . NRF data shows that 47 % of American consumers start Halloween shopping before October. Among them, 56% of young consumers ( 25 to 34 years old) shop before October. As the holiday season gets longer , retailers must evenly distribute promotions in the last four months of the year.

2. Consumers are cutting back on spending. Total U.S. Halloween spending is expected to reach $11.6 billion this year, down from $12.2 billion last year. Consumers will spend an average of $103.63, also down from $108.24 last year. Greeting cards and apparel sales are likely to see the biggest declines, a blow to businesses that rely on seasonal products .

It’s worth noting that consumers may not be spending as much this year as in the past, but they still love Halloween and want to buy cheaper products .

3. In-store promotions drive sales. A survey shows that 70% of shoppers said that in-store promotions are the most important factor in purchasing Halloween-related products , followed by sales /coupons (69%), then family /friend recommendations (27%), and finally social advertising ( 18%) and TV advertising (14%).

This means that price is the primary factor in shoppers’ Halloween purchasing decisions, and sellers who have competitive prices may stand out.

4. Discount stores are the primary shopping destination. Discount stores ( 37%) remain the top destination for consumers to purchase Halloween merchandise, followed by professional Halloween/costume stores (33%) and e-commerce platforms ( 33%).

Consumers are more price-conscious and retailers need to offer a wide variety of products at competitive prices.

Overall, consumers started Halloween shopping earlier this year and their expectations for Halloween remain high, but they are expected to spend slightly less than last year and be more budget-conscious.

In conclusion:

Seasonal products like Halloween may make a lot of money in a short period of time. On the surface, the operation seems simple, but in fact it is very difficult. The product creation cycle is long, and it tests the seller's operational and promotion capabilities. Therefore, it is not easy to do.

Consumer shopping trends are changing today, and relevant sellers need to pay attention to the latest developments in a timely manner, while learning from this year’s lessons and experience and preparing for next year.

Halloween