Halloween is the season of ghosts, goblins, and most of all, candy. According to The Nielsen Company, U.S. consumers are expected to purchase more than 2.1 billion in candy this Halloween season. The holiday generates the greatest sales volume of sweets for the entire year, with candy sales expected to jump nearly 63% compared to the previous ten week period. Nielsen’s analysis of 52 major U.S. markets shows that residents of the Salt Lake City/Boise metropolitan area bought 80% more candy than would be expected for a market its size, followed by Seattle and Portland, OR. Chocolate and non-chocolate miniature candy generated 39% of its annual dollar sales during the Halloween season last year, in comparison to the total candy category, which saw 22% of annual dollar sales in the same period.
Nielsen found that sales jump during Halloween for other spooky and savory items. 89% of annual costume hair coloring sales occur during the 10 weeks leading up to and including Halloween, as do 36% of sales of both refrigerated and shelved ciders and 28% of lollipops.
