Spirit Halloween Superstores, LLC is an American seasonal retailer that supplies Halloween decorations, costumes, props and accessories. It is the United States' largest Halloween retailer.[1] It is currently owned by Spencer Gifts. It was founded in 1983 and began in the Castro Valley "Village Shopping Center" in the San Francisco East Bay Area, California, and has headquarters in Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey.[2] In 1999, the store had 60 seasonal locations.[3][4]
Business operations
The interior of a Spirit Halloween location, showcasing various Halloween costumes and accessories for sale
During the Halloween season, Spirit operates over 1,400 store locations in North America.[5] The Spirit Halloween website is open year-round, offering its in-store products online. The store carries decor manufactured by Gemmy, Tekky Design, Yu Jun, Seasonal Visions International, Crazy Create, NewRaySun, PartyTime Costume, Seasons USA, Morbid Enterprises, Pan Asian Creations and more. Many decorations are exclusive to Spirit.
In early summer Spirit Halloween typically puts out teaser videos on social media and YouTube to create excitement for new items. A few days later the videos are followed by another one officially revealing and announcing the item.[6]
The retailer makes use of vacant retail space. The stores typically operate for 60 to 90 days, opening sometime in early to mid-August and usually closing two or three days after Halloween.[2][5][7]
History
Joe Marver created the Spirit Halloween business model, a pop-up store catering to Halloween revelers.[8] A dress retailer, he replaced his store's usual merchandise with Halloween items in 1983 and named the store after his Spirit Women's Discount Apparel business.[9] The following year, he opened the first year round location in the Castro Valley Village Shopping Center in 1984.[2][10] He grew Spirit Halloween to 60 seasonal stores nationwide[11] before it was acquired by Spencer Gifts in 1999.[9] His approach to short-term leases, locations, and the stocking of widely varied merchandise was novel in the Halloween retail sector.
Spirit Halloween began selling items on its website in 2005. By 2006, it operated 434 temporary stores in 46 states.[12] In October 2016, a store in Nebraska removed Native American costumes after the state's Indian community said they were disrespectful to their culture. However, the corporate office ordered the costumes put back on the shelves, prompting a wider debate on cultural appropriation.[13][14]
On October 21, 2016, Health Canada recalled eight products from Spirit Halloween, for fire hazards and choking hazards.[15] Despite promising to cease sales, 23 of its stores continued to sell products that had been recalled when Health Canada visited 45 stores across Canada.[16]
In October 2024, Spirit Halloween announced that it would pilot Christmas stores known as Spirit Christmas over the 2024 holiday season. It will operate 8 (previously reported as 10) stores in the United States, one opening mid-October, and the rest in November.[17] Some of the stores will be converted from Spirit Halloween locations.[18]
Spirit of Children
In 2006, Spirit launched a program called Spirit of Children to raise money in-store for children's hospitals. The program annually celebrates Halloween at hospital locations, supplying costumes and decorations for the events. Since 2007, Spirit of Children has raised over $29 million in donations.[19]
On April 11, 2022, it was announced that a film adaptation starring Christopher Lloyd and Rachael Leigh Cook was in development, with Strike Back Studios, Hideout Pictures, Particular Crowd and Film Mode Entertainment as co-producers, David Boag directing in his feature directorial debut, and Billie Bates writing.[20] On July 31, 2022, the first teaser was released.[21] The film was shot in Rome, Georgia and Nashville, Tennessee.[22] The film was released theatrically on September 30, 2022, before being released on video-on-demand (VOD) platforms on October 11, 2022.
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