Expert Q&A Rubie’s Costume Co. sories to your business? Is this a growth area for the industry? HB: Absolutely, it is a growth area for the industry. If you go back about eight or nine years, this was a very small part of the Halloween business. Pet costumes probably represented somewhere between $5 and $10 million at Halloween retail. The last estimate I saw from the National Retail Federation (NRF) was over $350 million. Despicable Me 2 Minion Dog Most of the licensors are recognizing this growth and are allowing us to do licensed pet costumes. One of the ones we are introducing—which will be hysterical—are the Minions from Despicable Me 2. We’re working on a whole slew of Marvel pet costumes as well. The same costumes that are popular for children are also popular for the other children—we know them as pets. It’s the same characters, Batman, Superman, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Star Wars. These are all the best sellers for pet costumes as well.
THI: How are online sales of Halloween costumes and accessories trending? HB: For quite a few years the online sector was growing by leaps and bounds, double digits and all. The online segment was probably the fastest-growing part of the industry. I think it is continuing to grow, but not at the same phenomenal rate of growth that it’s been experiencing for the last four or five years. THI: Are you seeing resurgence in Day of the Deadthemed products? HB: We are seeing resurgence in horror products
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completely, and we really are the leaders in the industry on horror products. Look at our Friday the 13th license, A Nightmare on Elm Street, and Leatherface, which is from Texas Chainsaw Massacre. We also have Michael Myers from the movie Halloween, and we just signed a new deal for Pennywise the Clown from the movie It. We really do have all of the licensed horror rights, and in addition to that we do Day of the Dead, where you’ll see all of the different skeletons. In addition to that we do a very large line of zombie products, because for the past three or four years zombies have been quite the hot commodity, but I do believe that zombies have peaked. I hate to use the term ‘trending down,’ but I do believe they’ve peaked.
THI: Are there any new trends in retail merchandising, or at retail in general? HB: The important thing with merchandising is that retailers are showing the full costume and all of the accessories that are available. I think that is increasing sales. As opposed to just having witch costumes or zombie costumes, they’ll actually have character boutiques with all the accessories alongside the costumes. I’ve heard from retailers this year that the average ticket was up, and I definitely attribute that to the way product is displayed, where it makes it easier for the consumer to think, “Oh, I don’t want to just buy the vampire costume, I also want to buy the wig, the makeup, the fangs, and the medallion.” So there are lots of accessories that people are buying. THI: How are sales affected by do-it-yourself (DIY) costumes? HB: People are grouping different accessories together and making their own character. Although they may be a pirate, they’re not going to be the same pirate that four or five other people might be wearing to the party. I think the accessories are a key part in creating a unique look for any costume.
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Winter 2014