# After Halloween sales



## remylass (Sep 18, 2008)

So, every year, I take Halloween and the day after off. This year, I thought I was lucky because it falls on the weekend. I ran to our Halloween stores yesterday to see if there was anything last minute to pick up. 

I was shocked. 

Shelves have been taken down and merchandise moved around. The stores are running on empty. I am bummed. I usually pick up all kinds of stuff at the Halloween sales afterwards. I often pick up things that I don't even really want, but I find really useful the next year. I don't even know that they have enough things that they will even be worth the time. :frownkin:


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## TearyThunder (Jul 1, 2006)

I have slacked off on after halloween shopping over the years. I have found it easier to use coupons and watch for decent sales to pick up what I want before halloween. I would rather pay a tad more for something I want than to hold off and not get it at a slightly lower price. I am sure it helps that I have stocked up on things that were bought because I didn't need/want them but bought them because they were 50/75/90% off after halloween.

I am certainly with you on the store selections this year too. What little that was available is mostly gone and there wasn't much that appealed to me to begin with. What did appeal to me has already been purchased with coupons or on sale. I think I might actually start my xmas shopping 11-1 since I seriously doubt I will bother with the halloween stuff.


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## madmomma (Jul 1, 2009)

I agree. We have three large halloween stores by me, Spirit Halloween, Halloween Express and one other one. Then there's Party City. All of them have very little left and what they do have is either junk or broken. I guess they didn't anticipate many sales this year. I'm with you TT, Sunday may be a good day to hit the early Christmas sales!


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## BobC (Aug 23, 2005)

My Halloween stores are the same way...It doesn't seem like there were any new props out in the stores this year. Seems like they had more costumes then props. Even the make-up in the stores by me is scarce. I'm planning on hitting up the stores the day after anyway. I used to get a lot of deals in Spencers gifts after Halloween but now that they are not carrying the full Halloween line Spirit which is there Halloween branch won't give any deals after Halloween they will pack it up and put it out next year rather then sell it cheap.


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## Spartan005 (Mar 13, 2007)

yeah surprisingly the halloween city store near me was pretty much empty when it came to props, and that was last week. sucks

are those stores even going to be open on Nov 1st? It's a sunday after all


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## Lunatic (Oct 3, 2006)

I totally agree with everyones thoughts. I'm glad that I wasn't the only one thinking it's been a dull year in the Halloween stores. They usually at the very least are inspirational to me on building something better, but it didn't really solidify this year. I had other things to build from last years plans anyway.


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## remylass (Sep 18, 2008)

I am just a little confused by the sale tactics. They made this big deal about sales are 30% higher when Halloween falls on a Saturday, but then they don't stock the stores. There is really nothing worth it left.


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## Spooklights (Jul 4, 2006)

I know my Micheal's won't be having a sale the day after. I went in yesterday to get a few strings of lights, and there were no Halloween items. NONE. Not even at the cash register, where they usually put the stuff they want to get rid of.


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## dasjman (Sep 10, 2008)

I know it goes against my love of discounted Halloween items, but it seems like the fact that the stores are blown out right when they should be shows actual good business practices on the part of these companies. While I love getting a nice prop at 50% or more off retail, I understand the concept that companies would rather stock less and sell out than take losses on seasonal items by reducing prices on overstock.


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## Scary Godmother (Oct 13, 2007)

I'm glad someone started this thread! I made my usual trip to Spirit on 11/1 for the 50% off sale, I had a couple of items in mind that I needed, and went early, as in past years, I have found all the good stuff sold out if you get there too late. My fogger tank sprung a leak this year, so I needed a new fogger, and I needed another 18" blacklight. I had been to the store only a couple of days before Halloween, and they had plenty of stock on both of these items. I was shocked to see that even as early as I got there, there were no big ticket items left at all!!! I saw a man with a fogger in his hands headed for the cash register, and right behind him was a stock boy with about 7 foggers in his hands. I asked him if those were all sold, or if I could buy one. He said these are not for sale, they are going in the back room to be sold next year! I looked as he went into the back room, and there was all kinds of stuff shoved back there, like they were hurrying to clear the shelves, lots of foggers and large black lights, all kinds of stuff! I saw a young man with a tag that said manager, so I asked him if I could buy a fog machine. He gave me the same story, that corporate had told them to remove certain items from the shelves and only sell them to people "if they already had them in their hands"??? I pointed out to him that the big sign on the window said 50% off ENTIRE STORE, and that refusing to sell certain items was false advertising. He apologized, but said I would have to take this up with corporate. I said I would certainly do that, but, I must have made him feel bad, because he said, "did you want to buy a fog machine?". I said yes, and he went and got me one, although it is only a mini fogger 400 watt, he would not sell me a larger one, even though he had many in the back room. It will serve the purpose of putting fog into my witches cauldron. He said he would put the fogger at the register for me, when I went up to pay, a different young man waited on me. I told him that the manager had put a fog machine behind the counter for me. He said, "he did???, did you have it in your hands already?". "We are not supposed to be selling those, corporate told us last night to put them all away". For the sake of argument, I just said yes, I had it in my hands already. You would think they were all brainwashed or something! I tried to call corporate a number of times to complain, but they do not answer the phone at all, I wonder why? I don't know if this is a normal procedure for Spirit, but I have never seen it done before. I am still thinking about calling the Better Business Bureau on this, I will continue to try and get a hold of Spirit on the phone.


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## HalloweenZombie (Jul 22, 2007)

I guess I got lucky with Halloween Connection in Taunton. Everything was listed as 50% off with the exception of their Egyptian items, which were marked at wholesale prices. I had bought quite a bit of stuff and the manager recognized me. He gave me 50% off a pair of Egyptian wall sconses/wall planters. Essentially, I paid much less than he paid for them. Also, makeup was listed as on sale for $.50 for each item, but he gave me a plastic shopping bag and said I could fill it up with makeup and he charged me $5 for the whole thing. I ended with more than $70 worth of makeup, including spirit gum, for just $5. 

However, that was the only store I really had luck with. The other stores carrying Halloween items really had nothing I was interested in.


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## mroct31 (Nov 10, 2007)

From what I could tell a lot of the stores must have started their 50% off sales either the day before Halloween or the day of as I, like many of you had been to some stores earlier in the week only to find them empty early on Sunday morning. I hit 5 stores on Sunday and like you was shocked at the lack of items left, or should I say the items I wanted  and find it hard to believe they were wiped out that soon. I specifically went to Big Lots to get some bluckies and they had a bunch on Wed. at regular price but they were all gone as they should be but at cost and that early on Sunday? Humm, not unless those 50% off signs had gone up sooner. Getting to the stores the day before or the day of Halloween is just not going to happen and with it falling on Sunday next year I wouldn't be surprised if this happens again.


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## divaann (Aug 7, 2008)

I went to Walmart Sunday to pick up a set of tombstones that I liked.I just had to have the ones with the old fashioned pictures of a couple in frames on the front. They had a ton of things left over. Problem is it was lame items, plastic partyware, novelty party items (pencils ,teeth,spider rings) etc. I did break down and buy a black glittered skeleton only because he was jointed and will be easy to pose. I really hate the glitzy sequined items they just don't say halloween to me. Most items were 50% off, some were a little more. Daughter picked up a costume for next year, which was good because most adult sizes are usually picked out. When I got to the checkout one tombstone wasn't reduced, but the cashier caught it and scanned the other one twice so I wasn't charged regular price for it. If someone is planning a party they could save alot, but I'm not sure how it would be at other places.


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## joker (Sep 25, 2007)

Spirit store here was clearing shelves as fast as they could...lol, but they didn't have much this year I was interested in anyway. I did buy 4 sets of left/right hands as I hate making hands...they're just a PITA. I bought a couple of severed heads to hang from the ceiling for our lights out night at our haunt this weekend and bought a possable latex skelly.

I did get a great deal at Lowes on one of their Gemmy 6' Grim Reapers for $22.50. I also bought three of their 30" tombstones for $1.75 each.


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## Spartan005 (Mar 13, 2007)

I went to halloween city on sunday and managed to get 3 foam skulls, a bag of bones, and one of those huge spiders that came out last year, all for 50 bucks. not bad. 

Didn't even bother with the spirit store or spencers though. Most of there stuff was gone as of two weeks ago


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## Lunatic (Oct 3, 2006)

Go get'em Scary Godmother! Corporate pissheads.


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## remylass (Sep 18, 2008)

dasjman said:


> I know it goes against my love of discounted Halloween items, but it seems like the fact that the stores are blown out right when they should be shows actual good business practices on the part of these companies. While I love getting a nice prop at 50% or more off retail, I understand the concept that companies would rather stock less and sell out than take losses on seasonal items by reducing prices on overstock.


I see what you're saying, and I agree, but these stores were empty of stock 2 weeks before Halloween. They really had nothing left.


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## jdubbya (Nov 6, 2005)

There was so little I was interested in when these places first opened, I had no interest in going to any day after sales. A lot of overpriced crap, and what I wanted I bought early on. I spent more on prop building stuff like foam, lumber, burlap, hardware, etc than actual Halloween props. I really hope next year is a lot better.


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## remylass (Sep 18, 2008)

I find that Lowe's is getting most of my Halloween cash in the last few years.


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## Offwhiteknight (Sep 17, 2008)

Yeah, it was pretty blah. Michael's essentially had nothing left as of Friday afternoon and both Targets near me were fairly bare too.

The day after? It was ridiculous. Target was stripped bare and putting out Christmas stuff, Party City had plenty left, but it was all the horrid crap I didn't want to buy before Halloween, and Spirit was essentially empty.

Of course, your story makes me wonder. They didn't open until about 10:15 on Sunday...they were supposed to open at 9am. Now, that may have been the time change...but your story makes me wonder if they put some of the good stuff that can hold for a year in the back...

It was terribly funny though, as a side note, to see my little toddler, about 21 months old, a pretty little girl, running like a crazy child around the vast open spaces of the Sprirt store hollering and smiling and carrying a big ol' skull around in her arms...hehe...


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## Johnny Thunder (Feb 24, 2006)

On Sunday afternoon while running out during the 1st quarter of the Iggles game for dip (don't ask!), I made a stop at Big Lots and got a few tombstones, masks, napkins, plates and other various sundries for 50% off.


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## anjpro (Sep 20, 2009)

same story here all the box stores were striped down on Sunday. I got a few things at 50% off.
The wife just came home from Wal-Mart and got me a kids zombie costume for a still prop next year normal price $20.00 shelf still said 50% off but it rang up at 75 % off.
$ 5.00 not bad


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## BioHazardCustoms (Aug 5, 2009)

I got a 1000w ground fogger from Spirit here at 75% off. paid 24.37 tax and all for it. Got it home and it worked for about 45 minutes. Now I get to take it apart, YAY!


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## scareme (Aug 29, 2006)

I was at Spencers a week before Halloween and they had a table for 75% off that I pretty well cleared. I got bloody gauze, heads, a hanging 12 ft bat monster, and lots of other things. The day after I just picked up 20 bags of spiderwebs, since I'm going to be doing a spider theme next year. I'm like Teary, I pick up things with a coupon and that way they are not gone before the after Halloween sales.


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## Devils Chariot (May 23, 2007)

BioHazardCustoms said:


> I got a 1000w ground fogger from Spirit here at 75% off. paid 24.37 tax and all for it. Got it home and it worked for about 45 minutes. Now I get to take it apart, YAY!


The two 700 watt foggers I bought from spirit last year were broken this year. I'll never buy ANYTHING from them again.

I noticed the 50% percent off sales are now on the the 30th and 31st of october at the local Do-It Center and Biglots.


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## fick209 (Aug 31, 2009)

Absolutely zero post halloween sales for me. After standing in the yard for an hour not having the heart/ambition to start tear down, drove to nearest Target, Wal-Mart, Walgreens & Kmart - nothing, nada, zip. All shelves cleared of all halloween stuff! Asked store clerks about halloween sales, replies were all about the same - no sales this year, everything was put away to make room for the x-mas season


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## BioHazardCustoms (Aug 5, 2009)

Devils Chariot said:


> The two 700 watt foggers I bought from spirit last year were broken this year. I'll never buy ANYTHING from them again.
> 
> I noticed the 50% percent off sales are now on the the 30th and 31st of october at the local Do-It Center and Biglots.


I believe that it is just a blown fuse, but I still get to take it apart and play around inside it, lol.

Most of our half-off sales here didn't start until the 1st,at least at the places like Big Lots and Do-It. Mazer's(A discount home improvement place) had a lot of the faux-stone plywood for about $5 a sheet. When we stopped by harbor freight, which is a discount tool store that had pneumatics and animatronics earlier in the month, They didn't have anything Halloween left.


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## nixie (Sep 17, 2008)

I've had pretty decent luck. I got a nice life-sized rather realistic rubber skelly for $25, some nice cloaked hanging smaller skellys for $1.49 each, a large lantern for $7, some great big scream tv-ish dvds for .50, some haunted mansion-esque sconces for $2 and witch type bottles with spooky labels for about $1. Our HalloweenUSA doesn't clearance anything, they just save it all for next year (which is always painfully evident when they open each year...) I'm pretty happy with my finds and I didn't make it out until last night. I guess I got lucky.


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## bozz (Sep 27, 2006)

*I did well once I found the 75% off sales........*

Yeah I scored at Walgreens and got 2 more of those giant bats with glowing eyes for $3.75 each (75% off) and I did well at Target at 75% off and got 2 vortex light show projectors that you can use with foggers for $ 7.49 each along with some solar power LED's.http://www.target.com/Color-Beam-Li...e=1&searchSize=30&id=Color Beam Light Show 11


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## UCIooBAkeeP (Oct 19, 2009)

I am so deprived i live in a tiny town in the middle of now where, i'm literally 3 hours from the nearest walmart!!! i had to rely on a few halloween sites to get some after halloween sales and that was slim pickins. I so wanted to be able to go to big Lots and Walmart oh man!!! i did get a few skulls for a little bit of nothing tho so i'm happy


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## Mobile Mayhem (Jul 4, 2007)

Once again I got a great haul from K-mart with their 90% off stuff. Purchased 6 costumes (all normally between 39.99 and 29.99), 9 packs of the blood window clings at .29 each, 3 swords and shields at a dollar each, a few potion bottles at .59 each...grand total, 30 bucks for 300.00 worth of stuff.


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## Jack Reaper (May 27, 2006)

Hey! Which K-Mart did you got to?
The one in Arvada had absolutely nothing the day after!!!


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## Mobile Mayhem (Jul 4, 2007)

Broomfield, 120th/Sheridan. Go to the Sears Grand I-25 and hwy 7.


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## kermat13 (Dec 1, 2005)

I just scored at Big Lots--bought $76 worth of stuff at 75% off. I had to stop myself from getting more.

The best score was 3 bags of bones for $5 each.


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## Mobile Mayhem (Jul 4, 2007)

After my K-Mart score earlier I went to the Sears Grand and got more 90% off costumes and masks. Spent 30 dollars once again and got some nice costumes and two really cool scarecrow masks.


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## debbie5 (Mar 2, 2007)

I haven't gone to any sales, as I was so bummed out by what was offered this year. There's really nothing I need or want, even at clearance prices. I think this is the first year I have ever felt that!!


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## Joiseygal (Sep 3, 2008)

I went to Halloween City the day after Halloween and got 3 really cool mask and about 15 foam heads. I also got a few smaller props like the rats eating the heart and a few snakes. I really didn't want to buy any big props this year because I wasn't really happy with them. I think they had a Gemmy moving Psycho prop, but I thought it looked dumb. I am so happy I am learning how to make my own props because most of the props that are on the market are not worth the money. I also went to K-Mart a few days ago and found some skulls, hockey mask and a few other Halloween items for 90% off.


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## trishaanne (Aug 20, 2005)

I only hit 2 stores for the sales this year. I went to Spirit, where one of the couple we married back in July were managers. Since they close the day after Halloween, their prices were 50% off plus her 25%. We got gifts for the NJ/PA 
Haunters gift exchange, a cool mask, the countess and a few other things. It was $400.00 worth of stuff for $125.00. Then we hit Walgreens and got the skull that plays the theme from Halloween for $2.49 since I can;t find the one we bought last year. (I wonder if I gave it to someone as a gift!!:googly Oh yeah, and went to Walmart for the 90% off sale and got a costume for one of our figures in the haunt next year as well as makeup.


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## Haunted Bayou (Feb 16, 2007)

There is nothing left on the shelves anywhere around here, which is probably good because I really don't need anything else right now.


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## Johnny Thunder (Feb 24, 2006)

There's a QVC outlet store near my office, and one day last week saw a big sign saying "80% off all Halloween" so I ventured in. I bought 4 latex masks (2 of which included matching latex monsterous hands) which per the tags would have totaled almost 60 some bucks. I got them all for $11.


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## bozz (Sep 27, 2006)

Big Lots just dropped to 90% off and I scored a mini strobe light kit with sound box light string and 2 strobes, a few masks with hair, one metal skull mask, a cool large bat and a Pirate wig. Lots of decent stuff left but going fast now.


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## The-Haunter (Sep 24, 2009)

Last year I was the asst manager at our local Spirit. Well the same manager was there this year so I got a call to come get all broken props. 
3 pop up grim reapers
Grinning gertrude 
lil Luci
3 boxes of costumes and masks
all the tree from this years set up
2 rolls jute netting
6 flaming caldrens
box of flood light bulbs 
48 cinder blocks
3 sheets of plywood
all I can think of right now and did I mention it was all free
I 

d


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