Making the Most of Halloween in Your C-Store

UPDATE: This year, Halloween spending is expected to reach $9 billion.  This number is second in 14 years only to last year’s record of $9.1 billion.  While $6.3 billion is expected to be spent on costumes, decorations, and greeting cards, there is still $2.6 billion dollars left to be spent on candy.  If you’re looking for ways to bring consumers into your store to spend their dollars this Halloween season, consider some of these trends.

Halloween is just around the corner and retailers in all industries should make sure they are taking advantage.  2017 is expected to bring record high spending, to the tune of $9.1 billion and the c-store owners across the country are in the perfect position to rake in much of this money.  With many opportunities at your disposal, there’s no reason to miss out on the holiday profits.  If you aren’t sure how to make the most of this Halloween, we’ve got a list that will help you get in the spirit.

• Sell Bulk Candy – Few people want to be the only door on the block without a bowl of goodies for trick-or-treaters and whether they’re really busy or just simply forgot about Halloween, there will be people scrambling for candy to pass out. Try to get some boxes of large bags of candy that last minute shoppers can grab at your c-store.  The NRF predicts that $2.7 billion will be spent on candy, don’t miss out on this category spending.
• Have a Halloween Event – You could always host a small event at your store for the neighborhood to bring them in on Halloween, or during the weekend. While hosting a Halloween event may not bring in a lot of purchases right away, it will help remind local consumers about your business and hopefully bring them back in later.
• Halloween Specials – As a c-store owner, you know that seasonal promotions are a great way to increase traffic and basket size. During the Halloween season, you have a great opportunity to boost your sales with product cross-promotion and special pricing on specific items.  Most product manufacturers have special Halloween edition products that your consumers will love so try promoting those even more.
• Offer Novelties – Although candy and snacks are a great choice for additional Halloween sales, you should also consider carrying some non-edible novelty Halloween products. During Halloween, consumers love buying fun items including spooky prank items and fun decorations.  Although you will have to make room for these short-term items, you will enjoy the typically higher profit margin when your c-store customers purchase them.
• Promote Fall Products – Halloween is a great time to promote your fall flavors and special products. That means if you’re not carrying pumpkin and cinnamon flavored everything, you should be.  Also, the cooler fall weather is pushing consumers toward drinks like coffee and hot cocoa.  By adding a hot drink station, you can provide a benefit to neighborhood trick-or-treaters.

The end of the year is filled with plenty of holidays, which means plenty of opportunities to make more money.  Halloween is a great opportunity to kick off the season and show your c-store customers that you’re paying attention to what they want.