Shoppers spending scary amounts to be spooky

Halloween preparations are well underway in St. John's and this year some people are spending more than they ever may have imagined.

Some shoppers told CBC News they plan to spend as much as $200 on the occasion this year. Consolidated Credit Counseling Services of Canada estimates Canadians spent more than $1.5 billion on Halloween last year.

"Costumes are really expensive now. Just looking at ones for her, and they only come with one and two pieces, and you have to buy all the accessories," said Heather Hicks who was shopping for her children. "It's gotten very expensive."

And it isn't just the costumes that are becoming more costly. Elaborate decorations are also flying off the shelves.

"All of our animatronics have been pretty popular," said Spirit Halloween store supervisor Keith Power. "We're selling display models and everything now. So yeah, we're getting down to the wire."

The force of the spend trend is coming from various factors, according to shoppers.

"Everybody just wants a bigger, better costume than everybody else, so I think that's what it is and as long as people have money they are going to keep spending it," said Luke Graham who was looking for a costume.

"Maybe a bit of movies," said Courtney Clark. "I guess just more people are getting into it and have a bit of money to spend on it so why not?"

Back at the store, Power said the reason people are spending so much comes down to costume envy and competition.

"It's almost like having the best house on the block. You want to outdo the next person, so of course if you're a zombie and your friend's a zombie you want to be the cooler one. You want to have everything a little bit more than they do," he said.