European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - October 29, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Ask marketing halloween scares up big profits for retailers of All kinds by Joyce m. Rosenberg the associated press hat cackling you hear into the halloween night in t a Witch or Vampire. It s a retailer or costume manufacturer totalling up receipts. Just How much Money halloween generates is hard to estimate since it includes Many different industries toys costumes greeting cards and decorations and Candy but it s big business however you look at it. Hallmark cards estimates the business excluding Candy sales at $400 million while the National confectioners association predicts $784 million in v halloween Candy will be sold this year playthings a toy Industry Magazine says halloween is the second biggest Selling season for mass retailers after Christmas. -.-.  that brings in that kind of Money is pretty serious stuff right a noway " a. /. " halloween is a time when everyone even retailers can cast off their Businesslike airs and get bizarre. In a recent newspaper insert Richfield farms a Garden Supply Center in Clifton n.j., advertised the usual grass seed Flower bulbs and fresh Apple cider plus scary masks make up body parts Bullet holes scars Teeth tongues ears warts blood capsules hoses shrunken  Richfield and other Garden suppliers also sell halloween Lawn ornaments for the growing number of homeowners who Load up their front Yards with Light up plastic pumpkins ghosts and witches using enough electricity to rival the kilowatt age of Many Christmas displays. Other retailers you would t think of As traditional halloween stores Don t miss a trick finding ways to turn the season to their advantage. Walde Bobks a National Chain fills windows with ghouls to advertise occult and horror offerings. Opticians drop a few rubber spiders arid cobwebs among the eyeglass frames in their displays. They May not have any halloween merchandise but it never hurts to put your customers in a Holiday mood. Halloween is a big Cash machine for discount stores like Wal Mart or specially retailers like party City which has 100 stores across the country. They make a Jot of Money from costumes Candy and decorations before moving on to the next season Christmas. But for hundreds of entrepreneurs halloween is a Timie to make Quick Money and vanish into the night. They own or manage temporary stores Selling Only halloween merchandise. Some Are independents while others Are chains. ".", -. V c Tony Bianchi co manager of halloween adventure in the East Village in Manhattan you could t find a better location Given the neighbourhood s strange denizens and Greenwich Village halloween Parade designs displays for stores and companies most of the year. At the end of August he turns into a retailer Selling masks costumes and Garish props. A 10-year Veteran of the business Bianchi knows his stuff and customers. Blood is always popular he said As he Hung Black and red Feather Boas on Racks. Passing a stand with leather whips and similar items he pointed and said hand cuffs very popular. Nearby he. Pointed to some rubber novelties these Are Tongue extenders these Are  Bianchi s store is part of Chain that began in the Philadelphia area and is now 100 Strong. The shops which rent space on a seasonal basis Are decorated to look like haunted houses ghost towns or egyptian tombs and salespeople might be dressed in mad doctor gowns or. Dracula capes. In Short it is shopping As theater or entertainment retail says company president Bruce Goldman. We were trying to bring the theatrics the excitement the Energy into the retail stores added brother Darron the company co owner. Shoppers can find halloween merchandise almost anywhere the Brothers said. But they come Back to halloween adventure shops for the experience. Even if i Don t sell them All i put on a show Bruce not Goldman said. People will Tell a Friend you gotta see this store " for children halloween is As much about Candy As costumes and parties. So Candy makers produce millions of miniature Candy bars and marshmallow pumpkins. And Candy Corn will inundate the country. You either love Candy Corn or hate it. Many people who eat it find they can t Stop. Luckily for them Candy makers turn it out by the billions of pieces. . Brach corp., a leading Chicago based Candy maker says it will make 14 million pounds of Candy Cor this year 80 percent of it for halloween. It makes 30 million pieces a Day with machines pouring first the White layer then the Orange and yellow layers into tiny triangular holds. They used to do it by hand today along with almost everything else the manufacture of Candy Corn is automated and computerized. Is it Good for you probably Only if you need a sugar kick. The ingredients in Brach s version Are sugar Corn syrup Salt confectioner s Glaze Honey dextrose Gelatin artificial flavor and yellow and red dyes. But As Brach s Points out it s fat and cholesterol be so All you have to worry about Are the 100 calories that go with every 24 pieces. The grinning Jack o lantern sitting in your living room window is kid stuff compared to the monster Nathan and Paula Zehr turned out. Their 799-Pounder won the 1994 world pumpkin weigh off sponsored by the International pumpkin association a group devoted to what it Calls the sport of pumpkin growing. Terry pimsleur who handles publicity for the san Francisco based group says growers Are toiling away in Hopes of becoming the first to weigh in with a thousand Pounder the biggest pumpkin she s Ever heard of was 990 pounds grown in Canada. How do they get them that big genetics has a lot to do with it so growers crossbreed to get bigger pumpkins. Once the pumpkins have started growing some people feed them Beer or milk pimsleur said. Limiting vines to just one fruit each is a necessity. You keep them covered with a wet Blanket. How do you move them you get several Strong people and a Strong Tarpaulin. You use a forklift to get it on the scale. In other words very carefully. The new York times contributed to this report. A giant Hershey s kiss leads a past halloween Parade of american and German children in Derheim Germany. At left Darron Goldman left and brother Bruce hide amid the masks at their halloween adventure store in Philadelphia. Is Dave Dudlo the latest looks of. And the Power rangers by Bette Harrison Cox news service halloween May be when the ghouls come out but in the South at least Good manners seem to be keeping most away from one lurid California fad the . Simpson halloween costume. The Simpson look a Simpson mask an afro wig a bloody no. 32 football Jersey and a plastic knife for $50 in t Selling in Atlanta and elsewhere. We be had  person Call. Arid i told him we just did t want to do that said Stephanie pettys assistant manager at Holiday costumes. We just feel it s too sad. I Don t care if we lose Money. We just won t  /_.,- a neither will Atlanta costumes. Eddie s trick and. Novelty shop Iri suburban Marietta has sold Only a few . And Nicole Simpson wigs. What is hot in adult costumes Renaissance. Renaissance. Renaissance said pettys. Plus costumes from movies like the Addams family and the  at Atlanta costumes Kim Garcia noted phantom of the opera costumes Are hot and we be had lots of requests for Dracula Elvira and Southern  at Eddie s trick and Novelty shop dozens Are requesting masks from the movies the mask and the Crow.  morphine Power Ganger costumes Are the hottest for kids. We be already sold out of the red one said pettys of Holiday costumes. Thomas the tank engine he s from the children s Book and to show is hot. And we re Selling a lot of nala costumes. She s the Young. Lioness in the lion  gone Are the Days when a child s halloween costume was a White Sheet and a big boo Caspar the Friendly. Ghost. A Tot s harem girl costume costs $20 and a ready to Wear mighty morphine Power danger costume can hover in the $25 to $40 Range. Perhaps that s Why the butterick co s $8.95 official pattern for the mighty morphine Power Ranger costume is the fastest Selling item in the pattern Industry. The Power rangers Are the hottest  there said Angela Fosse manager of cloth world in East Cobb a. If you Petiot a Power Ranger you re nobody. Nothing else comes  Akinde Gartner dresses up with face paint instead of a store bought mask. Is file if you can t buy it it what to you do when you can t find a costume for your child if you re creative you make your own. Here Are some suggestions from Regina Lednicky owner of dancer s dressing room in Waco Texas and the sewing fashion Council for creating costumes for the Little ones Vav v v a by. Start with the basics such As a pair of leotards or tights and g6,from there. Add tails ears and skirts 1o create a character. A. Use jogging suits to make a warm comfortable costume for children that won t Cut or bind. Spots Stripe s and fur May be added in just a few seconds. These costumes can be recycled for around the House outfits. Look in secondhand shops for costumes that have been used in children s Talent shows and Beauty contests use Dye to decorate pieces of material to make accessories such As Butterfly wings leggings and neck bands. /".". ". Pop the lenses out of a pair of Plain sunglasses and decorate the rims with feathers glitter and rhinestones for a glitzy festival Maski create feet and paws for animal costumes using old tube socks mittens and gloves by gluing on toenails Cut from Felt or by painting toes and pads on the Bottom old costume jewelry May be used to create a Black cat s Collar or a Gypsy s costume. Insert pieces of wire hangers through yarn braids arid Mold them into crazy shapes to add a Wacky look to a Clown costume. Remember safety make sure children can see clearly enough through their face masks or use makeup instead of a mask. To make White grease paint for clowns mix 2 Tablespoons of shortening 5 Tablespoons cornstarch and one Teaspoon flour. Add two or three drops of Glycerine for smoothness. Add food colouring for color. Look for ways to Recycle costumes and accessories. Gold glitter can turn last year s Bumblebee wings into this year s Angel wings. Cox news service halloween tips from g a r f i e l. 9 trick or treat in groups for safety. It s also More fun safety tips from the National safety co Onciu 16 the stars and stripes saturday october 29,1994 the stars and stripes 17