It’s a tradition to head to the nearest store the day after Halloween and indulge in copious amounts of discounted candy without judgment. However, in this day and age, a phenomenon has been destroying beloved practices: price increases. For this woman, it was personal, blasting Walmart for the discount on leftover Halloween candy.
‘Clearance’ Halloween candy at Walmart
Ohio-based Walmart customer, Megan (@sayhalogoodbye), films the mountains of unsold candy on Walmart’s clearance shelves.
“We used to be a proper country that had proper sales on November 1st,” she says, dismayed. “It was its own holiday.”
Then the camera glimpses the 25% clearance sign in black-and-white. “25% off candy,” she remarks. When the content creator browses through aisles of stacks of candy, some with $15.98, $9.98, and $4.48 price tags, she calls out the retailer.
“What, marking it up by 100 to 500% wasn’t enough of a profit margin for you?” Megan questions angrily. “And they know better because the decor and costumes are 50% off.”
The content creator continues to express her frustration in the caption. “Getting REALLY tired of #Halloween #candy prices skyrocketing and places like #Walmart playing games with their traditional 50% off clearance prices on November 1st. I need my #kitkat Counts!” she wrote.
Viewers echoed the same sentiment
The video racked up over 660,000 views. Many viewers concurred with the TikToker, offended by the 25% off deal.
“Let it sit on the shelf,” one viewer commented.
“When the price is double what it should be, 25% off is insulting,” another remarked.
“I went to catch the sale on Halloween candy and I was angry that it was only 25% off – SAD,” a third shared.
Meanwhile, others cheered at the overflowing amount of candy.
“The fact that it’s THAT much on the shelves STILL is joy to my eyes BECAUSE we have more control than we realize,” one commenter said.
“I’m proud to see there’s so much left over though. Usually everything is [gone] the day before Halloween,” a second agreed.
Why has Walmart’s Halloween candy become expensive?
As the days pass and more products are purchased, prices gradually decrease to clear excess inventory. However, Halloween was sour for consumers this time of year. CNBC reported that chocolate prices have skyrocketed 30% since last year due to inflation, tariffs, and a global cocoa shortage. In addition, candy faced a 10% price hike.
Of course, this caught consumers’ attention, leaving them to choose between affordable options, handing out less candy, or not handing out any at all. Last month, another Walmart customer chose the latter after noticing this trend. Although the numbers are not yet available, Halloween candy sales are projected to reach $3.9 billion.
Whether inflation impacted these reduced prices is unknown.
@sayhalogoodbye Getting REALLY tired of #Halloween #candy prices skyrocketing and places like #Walmart playing games with their traditional 50% off clearance prices on November 1st. I need my #kitkat Counts! #shopping ♬ original sound – The Fangirl
The Mary Sue reached out to Megan via Instagram direct message and TikTok comment as well as Walmart via press email.
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