Halloween is spawning new holiday traditions

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Press Release

Halloween is spawning new holiday traditions -

Halloween Is Second Most Important Holiday in Decorations Market

Stevens, PA September 24, 2004 -While Halloween claims primeval roots, the way Americans observe Halloween is unlike any other in the pantheon of holidays. "Without formal sanction from the government or religious groups, Halloween has become the second most popular decorating holiday. Although it used to be primarily a children's holiday, today adults make merry on Halloween along with their kids.

"Halloween has become the first true people's holiday and its traditions have spread grass-roots fashion throughout the culture," says Pam Danziger, president of Unity Marketing and author of Why People Buy Things They Don't Need.

This year the majority of American households will decorate their homes for Halloween, according to a new research study of the decorating market from Unity Marketing. They will spend more than $1 billion this year on Halloween decorations, up from last year's spending. And they will decorate both the inside and outside of their home.

"Along with natural decorations like pumpkins and cornstalks for the front porch, more decorators are hanging Halloween lights, Christmas-fashion, around the eaves of their home and mounting lighted, even moving, wire sculptures in the yard.

"Inside their decorating focus is tabletop centerpieces and decorative bowls for candy, candles and Halloween-themed candle accessories and paper and party decorations," Danziger says.

New trick-or-treat tradition involving the whole family: Getting Booed!
A new Halloween tradition is spreading rapidly grass-roots fashion throughout the culture. Called "Getting Booed," it involves a family making a Halloween gift basket and leaving it anonymously on a neighbor's door step with a sign "You Got Booed." The receiving family's job, then, is to make up another gift basket and play the trick on another family in the neighborhood who doesn't have a 'got booed' sign on their door.

"The way we celebrate holidays, in particular a grass-roots holiday like Halloween, reflects the trends of the time. Today consumers are emerging like butterflies out of their protective 'cocoons,' and looking to reconnect with the outside world. Connecting has become our dominant trend and along with it comes a desire to make new connections with our neighbors. Halloween celebrations, like trick-or-treating and getting booed, are a way for us to connect," Danziger explains.

Spooky Halloween decorations will have the edge this year
While many decorators choose harvest-home or 'fun-and-funky' themes to decorate for Halloween, this year the dark and spooky side of Halloween will be the preferred decorations theme, the research reveals.

Unity Marketing's new study of the decorations market, Seasonal Decorations Market Report, 2004: The Who, What, Where, How Much, and Why of Holiday Home Decorating, is based on focus group research with 'passionate' holiday decorators and a survey of 1,000 consumers who bought holiday decorations in the past year. An investment for marketers and retailers of decorations in growing their business, it reveals decorating practices and purchase behavior of decorations consumers. It provides details about which holidays they decorate their homes and what kind of decorations they use, how much they spend and where they buy decorations.

Retail sales and growth statistics are presented for 12 different types of indoor decorations, such as paper and party decorations, tabletop decorations, candles as decorations, Christmas ornaments and tree decorations, etc.; and 6 different outdoor decorations, including outdoor lights, flags and banners, and flowers, plants and wreaths for outdoor display. Also included are retail sales and growth for 11 different holiday and party celebrations. Attitudes about why people decorate their homes are also included as well as profiles of five different personalities of decorators and their preferences.

Finally brand awareness and usage is provided for 22 leading decorations brands including profiles of the market share leaders, including Hallmark, American Greetings/Carlton Cards and Martha Stewart Everyday. For more information about the study, use this link http://www.unitymarketingonline.com/reports2/christmas/ or visit http://unitymarketingonline.com/

About Unity Marketing
Founded in 1992, Unity Marketing (www.unitymarketingonline.com) is a marketing consulting firm that specializes in consumer insights for luxury marketers. Pam Danziger is the company's founder and author of Why People Buy Things They Don't Need ( Chicago : Dearborn Trade Publishing, 2004) which uncovers the motivations, desires and emotional needs that drive consumers to buy. Unity also publishes market research studies on the luxury market, jewelry, garden, pet accessories, home furnishings, gifts and collectibles, greeting card and stationery, tabletop, art and wall d�cor markets, as well as the Luxury Business newsletter. Pam is currently working on her second book, Let Them Eat Cake: Marketing Luxury to the Masses - as well as the Classes, to be published in 2005.

For media, Unity Marketing can make tables, charts and graphs available about consumer holiday decorating and spending upon request.

Contact: Pam Danziger, 717-336-1600

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