Focus On Halloween: 26 July

By Vince Bamford (vjbamford@googlemail.com)

Publishing: 26 July 2025

Advertising deadline: 11 July 2025

Submissions deadline: 11 July 2025

Print, digital and sponsorship opportunities

Sales of seasonal Halloween goods are going from strength to strength, with £100m (19.1%) added to the value of the Halloween category in the past two years alone [Kantar]. Kantar’s analysis also shows that the supermarkets won share from the discounters during last year’s witching season. How have they done this? How are retailers looking to differentiate themselves from their rivals – through ranging, merchandising, promotions, in-store marketing, ads, etc – during this crucial sales opportunity? And what’s in store for this year?

Sales: This feature will pay close attention to the sales performances of brands, own label and retailers over the past year and how this is changing. To what extent are retailers using their Halloween to differentiate themselves? Who’s doing it best? Which brands are winning? Why?

HFSS: Another area of interest is what impact the looming (but repeatedly delayed) HFSS regulations have had on how brands and retailers have been approaching Halloween. Will Halloween be sweets and chocolate brands final hurrah before the regulations come in next year? What will they be doing to make the most of it?

Cost pressures, promotions and retail prices: We are also interested in how inflation is shaping the market and what influence this is having on retail prices. Are brands promoting more to keep shoppers buying? And what influence is all this having on the market share of brands versus own-label?

Innovation: This feature will pay close attention to the latest trends in Halloween and how these are playing out in terms of product innovation. We will profile eight new products or ranges, ideally ones that have not appeared in The Grocer before. We need launch date, rsp, and a hi-res picture of each.