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Commerce

October 7, 2024

 

What’s in the bag? Getting to the bottom of what drives Halloween candy sales

New research reveals what consumers spend on, snack on and gift from Halloween to the New Year.

Brightly-colored Halloween candy spread out on a table with a plastic skeleton hand reaching over the candy.

Vicki Hyman

Director, Communications, Mastercard

One of those moments when we realize that we are, in fact, now adults? When we’re able to make it through the checkout line at the grocery store without a lingering glance at the candy bar display.

Yet the lure of nostalgia remains potent, particularly this time of year. Research by Mastercard into candy-buying trends shows that, no matter how much out taste buds have evolved, 81% of us still buy the candy we loved as a kid, and that 56% of us still buy candy, even if we don’t expect any trick-or-treaters. (How else to explain the mysterious endurance of candy corn?)  

Still curious about candy consumption? Chew on these findings.

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