14 Oct

How To Save While You Scare

Posted in Synergy Suggestions on 14.10.11 by John Meloche

It’s that time of year again. We’re just about two weeks away from Halloween! It’s one of those interesting holidays that isn’t really a holiday (since no one gets the day off from work!), but it is celebrated nonetheless. Instead, it is a day for thrills and chills – literally! Who knew being scared could be so much fun?

For kids, it’s all about dressing up in costumes and going trick or treating. For adults, it’s all about making sure your kids are safe while doing so. And for business owners, it’s all about cashing in on the fun! Naturally, it costs money to decorate a store or a home, and to get all dolled up in a spooky outfit.

Earlier this week on Moneyville.ca, Madhavi Acharya-Tom Yew wrote that Halloween is a “$1.5 billion holiday in Canada, and the fourth busiest shopping event of the year” as “each year, families spent an average of $90 on candy, costumes, and a trip to the pumpkin patch, according to industry figures.”

Acharya-Tom Yew also writes that buying Halloween costumes from a store isn’t a bad investment since children generally enjoy wearing them more than once. It shouldn’t be too difficult to save money while celebrating, she mentions, as there is plenty around the house that one can use to get into the spirit of the season.

For store owners, you may not even need to have “Halloween items” to cash in on the Halloween craze. If you promote the use of some every day household items to create something festive, you may just be able to increase your sales. Today, one of our Synergy reps shared a great idea utilizing this concept.

“When I was younger, we used to grab some of my mom’s pantyhose,” he said with a laugh, “We’d fill them up with rolled up newspaper to create a set of arms and legs. Then we’d stuff the filled up pantyhose into some old jackets and pants. We’d put them together, prop them up on a chair, add a jack-o-lantern for a head, and we had our very own scarecrow for Halloween!”

Jeffrey Schwartz, the executive director of Consolidated Credit Counseling Services of Canada, Inc. would very likely agree with taking this approach to celebrating the holiday. Said Schwartz: “Use this Halloween as an opportunity to teach your children good money management skills by giving them a budget to create a fun experience at your home.”

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