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Mr. Halloween Spots Holiday Trends

Halloween teends - not just for kids...

The infamous Vincent Price once said, “It’s as much fun to scare as to be scared.” Chris Riddle, the official Halloween trend spotter for American Greetings, a major national manufacturer of Halloween party supplies and cards, is completely in agreement. Riddle is a man so “haunted” by the holiday that he has earned himself the nickname, “Mr. Halloween.”

Riddle, who was one of three Halloween enthusiasts showcased on the HGTV special, “Extreme Halloween,” has also been a featured guest on FOX News and numerous regional TV and radio stations. His Halloween trend observations have been quoted in Time, USA Today, the New York Times, American Magazine… even Women’s Wear Daily!

Riddle is an avid collector of Halloween antiques and memorabilia. Many of the pieces in Mr. Halloween’s 200-piece collection date back to the early 1900s and have served as inspiration for popular “retro” Halloween greeting card designs.

Riddle not only has a personal passion for Halloween, he but he works on creative concepts for the holiday all year round. He analyzes decorating fads and predicts costuming trends for the coming year. This research assists in the development of American Greetings’ Halloween cards and other products.

Mr. Halloween roves the halls at American Greetings wearing pumpkin socks and skeleton neckties in the middle of summer. He’s particularly fond of his two jack-o-lantern tattoos. Coworkers always know when he has arrived because his license plate reads: “SCARY II.” A recorded message left in his voicemail at work encourages all callers to “have a spooktacular day.”

Among the top trends “Mr. Halloween” cites for Halloween are:

• Adult Side of Halloween - Now that the biggest Halloween spenders are 25 to 35 year olds, who spend an average of more than $60 each, products for the holiday are appealing to this group by incorporating a broader range of humor. Several cards from American Greetings reflect this trend. And, since the greatest growth over the past two years in Halloween spending has occurred among 18 to 24 year olds who upped their spending by 30 percent last year alone, the Creative Studios at American Greetings made a special effort to include cards that reflect the irreverent humor and punk rock style that pop culture has made popular with this crowd.
  
  
• Cards for Kids from Kooky to Cute - Despite the holiday’s scary reputation, the innocent side of Halloween is the focus of this year’s cards for kids from American Greetings that incorporate designs for every level of spookiness, from cute to kooky to the type of “gross” humor all eight-year-old boys love the best. American Greetings Halloween activity cards featuring friendly monsters and not-so- spooky haunted houses are a hit with school age-children year after year. For Halloween a collection of cards with spooky mazes, colorful stickers and creative coloring fun continue the holiday tradition.
  
  
• Adult Halloween Parties – Originally a one-night occasion for children to collect candy, Halloween has developed into an extended season for adult celebrations as well. In fact, Halloween is now the third most popular party occasion for adults, right behind New Year’s Eve and the Super Bowl, and the second most popular decorating holiday, topped only by Christmas.

Why the passion for all things Halloween? For Riddle, it all stems from wonderful childhood memories. “When I was growing up, my mom always made Halloween a big deal,” he said. “Every year, we carved pumpkins and made costumes for trick-or-treating. She encouraged us to “make-believe,” and be anything or anyone we wanted to be. Later in my life, I discovered Halloween snapshots of my mother from the ‘40s, and realized she was celebrating Halloween long before we kids were born. It made me realize that Halloween is a holiday for everyone to celebrate.”

For Chris, the celebration of Halloween isn’t just one day; it is the entire month of October. His number one favorite thing to do during the holiday season is to visit pumpkin patches and look at all the pumpkins in their natural state, before they become jack-o-lanterns.

When asked why his love for Halloween has lasted more than 30 years Chris replied, “People yearn to remember the past. Halloween has a sentimental meaning, and it’s fun to reminisce. When I see the kids trick-or-treating it reminds me of when I was a kid, and I think it’s important to remember the past because it’s made us who we are today.”

Mr. Halloween is learning to “pass the pumpkin,” so to speak … Taking his love for the holiday and evolving it into a family legacy for his children. After all these years, he is still one of the only people who don’t mind getting “BOO-ed.”

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