Halloween Store Craziness

The Post was not lying about the Halloween stores in Athens being extremely busy the week before Halloween.  But what do you expect?  OU has around 20,000 students and two costume stores to shop at; of course they are going to be insane especially because most college students tend to be procrastinators.  

I braved the crowds and went to both costume  stores the weekend before Halloween to find out the popular costumes and trends in Athens.  I somewhat regret this decision, because the interviews that should have taken around 10 minutes lasted 45 minutes.  However it was worth it, because I received some really great information and good insight from the assistant managers.

Halloween USA

The outside of Halloween USA

My first stop was Halloween USA, which is located in the Athens Mall, on State Street.  I did not feel as crammed in this store because it is very spacious and wide open.  I went around 11 o'clock, but it was not as busy as I expected.  There seemed to be more Athens residents shopping than students.  Once I walked into the store, I was surrounded hundreds of costumes, accessories and decorations.  I really triggered my excitement for the upcoming holiday. 

The inside of Halloween USA filled with tons of Halloween goodies

I was able to talk to the assistant manager, Katie Labouitz.  I thought we would conduct the interview back in the office, but she pulled me to the side right by the masks and dressing rooms.  The interview went very smoothly, expect few a few interruptions by confused employees needing her assistance.  

"The popular costumes for the women are in this HOT! HOT! HOT! section, which the prices range from 30 to 60 dollars," Labouitz said.  "They tend to be more revealing and at the block party people like to show off their figures even thought it is cold.  There are chefs, fairytale and nursery rhyme characters, and sport costumes."

The Hot! Hot! Hot! section for women in Halloween USA 

"Batman and Joker costumes have been big because of the movie for boys," Labouitz said.  "The guys also like the costumes in the Adult Humor section and superheros are big this year like Ironman. The gangster costumes are doing well and pirates are always popular.  We have a lot of political masks and I am surprised those have not been selling better. "

The Humor section in Halloween USA

She said the the average person spends about 30 to 40 dollars on their costumes, which includes accessories like hats, sunglass and weapons.  

With the declining economy, I was very curious if they were experiencing more people just buying small accessories because they were opting to make their own costumes.

"There is no happy medium," Labouitz said.  "Some people will come in and just want one accessory, and some people will come in and buy a whole costume with everything included.  It is shocking that there are so many different purchases.  I am also surprised with the amount of people how come in and spend 60 to 100 dollars on an expensive costume with all of the accessories, because I thought more people would try to save money around the holidays."

Labouitz said the overall trends she is seeing are characters from movies, animals like a gorilla suit and group-themed costumes.

Court Street Costume Store

 The costume store on Court Street advertises that they do indeed have costumes inside

The costume store located in the heart of downtown Athens on Court Street was happening when I ventured there!  I went around 4 o' clock in the afternoon on a Sunday and apparently that was the cool time to go. There were tons of students in their browsing for costumes, and it also doesn't help that the store is very narrow and crammed with Halloween goods.  

The narrow inside of the costume store 

I asked around the store and was told assistant manager, Alysia Galt, would be the best person to talk to because she works the register.  Although I got a lot of great information, the interview did not go nearly as smoothly as the one at Halloween USA.  Alysia was manning the counter, so after each question she would have to help students who needed a pair of tights, a fake mustache or a pair of nerdy glasses.  So, then I would resort to scanning the extensive wig collection. I was dodging anxious people and protecting my space at the counter so I could finish the interview. Galt muti-tasked extremely well and did not even get a little flustered with all the commotion.  

                                 The assortment of wigs I looked at when conducting the interview 

Galt grew up in Athens and has worked at the costume store since she was 17 years-old.  She came down from her Chicago residence this year to help out with the madness. 

"The popular costumes for guys this year are Top Gun characters, Mario and Luigi, Joker, and Indiana Jones," Galt said.  "For girls, they are sailors and indians; we already ran out of headdresses and we ran out of the work belts for construction workers.  It really depends on what is happening this year like politically and in the movies."

The costume store also offers rental costumes.  These are popular because they are cheaper.  The average costume with all the accessories is around 36 dollars.  

The assortment of rental options in the costume store

"That is why Top Gun is so popular," Galt said.  "It is a renal and we have already rented out 10 to 15 jumpsuits out. "

According to Galt, the average cost of a costume if the person is not renting one is around 50 dollars if people buy a full costume with make-up, wigs, and jewelry.   

Galt said that she is constantly bombarded with students asking her for costume ideas.  She sees a lot of people come into the store and browse around to get inspiration.

"I like working with guys because they take any suggestion they can get, so they are pretty easy to help," Galt said.

When I asked her if she has heard of any really good ideas, she said she helped a group of girls who were dressing up as troll dolls.  

"I like the group costumes because I think they are more fun and have more of an impact than just one person," she said.  

 

Halloween in Athens has been a tradition for Galt since she was very young.  According to Galt, her mom loves Halloween,  so she has been part of the Court Street celebration since the age of eight.

However, the celebration has changed quite a bit over the years for Galt.  

"I went to OU and I have noticed that the celebration has gotten larger while there seems to be less people dressing up in costumes," she said.   

So according to the employees at the costume stores, we can expect to see a lot of people dressing up as the Joker, politicians, Indiana Jones, pirates, indians, and superheros.