As the leaves continue to change and fall from the tree branches, the winds of change seem to be rolling through big box stores such as Lowe’s and Walmart, specifically in the seasonal decoration department. Over the last few weeks, major retailers have seen a massive decline in the sale of Halloween decorations. What is causing the lull in sales? Well, it seems to be that mass amounts of areas around the city feel as though their unkempt yards classify as “scary decor”.
To back track a little, the trouble started brewing in mid-september when the foliage of fall started to show. While most people have sent their seasonal summer gardener on their way, the accumulation of fallen leaves and over grown grass and shrubs started to excel. As the overgrowth spread, the sale of spooky decorations started to decline.
Local Walmart manager, Patricia Markwell says, “It’s really sad, you know. I come in everyday and the spiders aren’t selling, the tombstones are still in stock. it’s just not how Halloween is supposed to be. Poor yard upkeep does not equal festive decor”. With the mass decline of Hallow’s Eve merchandise being sold, major retailers are fearing a ripple effect into Halloween spirit, which could mean less trick-or-treaters, and less production of bite-sized candy in years to come. Could this be the beginning of the end for the centuries old holiday?
While it is very plausible, it’s not necessary inevitable. This massive downslide in Halloween decor isn’t due to a protest against the haunted holiday, it is nothing more than people not being able to handle their own fall yard work. With busy schedules and hectic work weeks, yard work chore lists are going unfinished, and resulting in scary looking lawns, despite no spooky add-ons. The easiest solution to this eery epidemic is to call in the professionals, and we don’t mean the Ghostbusters. In recent technology, companies like Eden App have developed easy-to-access, on-demand lawn care right from your smartphones. By allowing the professionals to handle things such as lawn cutting, leaf collection and shrub trimming, people can return to using jack o’ lanterns, ghosts and cobwebs to scare the trick-or-treats, not their unsightly yards.
While an abandoned haunted-looking house is always in the Halloween spirit, let’s keep the rundown properties to the scary movies, not real life.
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