Young Happy People in Costumes at Halloween Party
Young Happy People in Costumes at Halloween Party. Group of Young Smiling Friends Wearing Halloween Costumes Drinking Cocktails and having Fun in Nightclub. Celebration of Halloween
By Ed Avis
The other day I was interviewed by a BBC reporter about how COVID will affect Halloween, and in particular how it is affecting sales at costume shops. It’s a topic that’s been on my mind a lot lately.
The reporter and I talked about the role costumes play in Halloween in the United States, and how wearing a costume and makeup is truly an escape for many people. Adults who are stuck in dreary office jobs can suddenly become superheroes or star athletes or movie characters. The poor schmuck who wears a frumpy suit to work every day can dress up like a pirate; the woman who normally dresses in hospital scrubs can become a princess for a day.
For kids, wearing costumes means something else. Little Johnny’s imagination takes him to the moon when he’s dressing like an astronaut and 8-year-old Kristin senses the sea spray in her face when she’s pretending to be a marine biologist.
For both kids and adults, Halloween is essential. It’s the one day a year everyone can become something they are not – someone better, smarter, more attractive, scarier, stronger, etc. And they can do this in public. And I think that’s the bottom line: In the end, everyone who wears a costume is seeking attention.
And guess what – right now we want attention more than ever. We’ve been stuck inside for darn near six months, and when we do venture out we look like bank robbers with our masks on. We see far fewer friends and family than we normally do, and we hug them even less often. Halloween this year probably means more than in any normal year.
I told the BBC reporter that yes, many costume shop owners I speak with are worried, especially because some customers are still afraid to come into their shops. They’re worried that internet sales will take an even greater chunk of their sales this year. They’re worried that last-minute costume buyers will head to the giant Walmart or Target store – where there’s lots of room and ventilation – instead of visit their little store on the corner.
But then I turned the conversation in a different direction. I explained how the National Costumers Association has launched the Help Halloween Happen campaign to encourage shop owners to promote safe, socially distanced Halloween events in their communities. And how the Halloween & Costume Association has launched its campaign to encourage safe trick or treating. And how many, many other groups and companies have dreamed up countless ideas for families to celebrate Halloween safely this year.
The common denominator of all of these programs and ideas is that they involve costumes. They give people the excuse to dress up, to have that wonderful, magical release that costumes and makeup deliver. COVID isn’t going to take that away.
The BBC reporter concluded his interview with a question: Considering all the headwinds facing Halloween, are costume sales doomed? I thought for a moment and then said, “I’m going to play the optimist here – sales might not be amazing this year, but Halloween is going to happen and people are going to dress up. So no, costume sales aren’t doomed.”
Then I hung up the phone and started planning my own Halloween costume.
Ed Avis is the executive director of the National Costumers Association. Contact him at executivedirector@costumers.org.
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