Get out the pumpkins and the ghosts, stock up the candy bowl, and find a costume, it’s almost Halloween.

With a record 170 million people planning to celebrate Halloween this year, the holiday continues to be embraced by many as a time to let loose and have a good time. That also means for retailers, there is some money to be made.


Spending on the holiday is expected to rise to $8 billion, up 17.5 percent from last year, according to the results of a survey conducted by BIGinsight on behalf of the retail industry’s trade group, the National Retail Federation. A pick-up in spending would also bode well for the sluggish U.S. economy.


According to the survey, seven in 10 Americans — some 71.5 percent — will celebrate this year, up from 68.6 percent last year, and the most in the survey’s ten-year history.


The average person will fork out about $79.82 on decorations, costumes, and candy, up from $72.31 last year.


A bigger part of the budget this year will go to costumes. Although the average person will spend about $28.65 on costumes, up slightly from $26.52 in 2011, retailers and costume manufacturers are saying that costumes continue to become more elaborate each year and shoppers are buying more items to go along with their costume.


Cheryl Kerzner, vice president


Article source: http://www.cnbc.com/id/49157479