The time has come to get out those fishnets, strap on a black wig and call yourself a witch. Or maybe give in to your animal instinct by transforming into a ferocious feline.
Whether your Halloween dream is to be a seafaring pirate or a bundle of grapes, local costume shops have seen and outfitted it all.
But what many Halloween revelers do not know is that once the plastic ghouls are laid to rest in the back of the garage, many Capital District costume stores stay busy throughout the year.
`Most people think that we’re only open during Halloween,` said Eric Zenner, owner of The Costumer, in Colonie and Schenectady. `Our busiest time is in the spring.`
The Costumer, a 90-year-old local costume business, is celebrating its fifth year at its new location at 1995 Central Ave. According to Zenner, the store is open year-round and almost never sees its business slow.
Zenner said one of the reasons the Costumer is always busy is because it services theaters throughout the region with directors seeking costumes to fit the roles. For those types of situations, Zenner said, the store typically rents out many peasant costumes, and old-fashioned outfits.
But theatrical costumes are not the only things that can keep a costume store in business throughout the year.
Lois Myers, owner of Halloween Hall, in Ballston Spa, said that even though her store does not carry theater costumes, she stays busy throughout the year.
`I’ve been in business 27 years, so I guess there’s a need all year round,` she said.
While it is undeniable that Halloween is the busiest season for the store, she said, there is a demand for costumes during other holiday seasons during the year. Especially Christmas and Easter.
Myers said Halloween Hall typically rents somewhere between 50 to 60 Santa suits per Christmas season and about 40 bunny suits every Easter.
Zenner agreed that those seasons are particularly busy, with The Costumer typically renting out about 150 Santa suits and 100 bunny suits.
Zenner said renting is a huge part of his business, and that The Costumer rents to adults and children. Halloween Hall only rents to adults.
Renting costumes can become a form of repeat business for the shops as well. Zenner said many `Santas` who are pleased with the suits they rented one year will reserve the same costume for the following year — up to a year in advance.
Both costume shop owners said that other big-business times for them occur around the Fourth of July, when parades are common, and holidays such as St. Patrick’s Day, when many like to dress up as leprechauns.
`We get a lot of business from school-aged children,` said Myers, who said that many schools require students to dress up as past presidents while presenting a report they had written.
`Quite often we bail out frantic parents when their kid has to look like George Washington,` she said.
The slowest time of year for the costume shops is the summer, when holidays are scarce and reasons to put on extra clothing, let alone costumes, are few and far between. But summer is also the time when many costume shop owners get their inspiration for what costumes to order for the upcoming Halloween.
Myers said, this year she was expecting the Joker, from `Batman: The Dark Knight,` to be a very popular costume.
`Had Halloween been in June, you wouldn’t be able to keep them on the shelf,` she said.
But, according to Myers, by the time Halloween does roll around people are more interested in dressing up as the characters that they have seen on the big screen most recently.
Popular in both stores this year are Star Wars character costumes, which came as a surprise to both owners.
Another costume niche that is growing in popularity, according to Zenner, is pet costumes.
`You see a lot of people getting a Darth Vader costume for their dog, or a superhero,` he said.
And, as seen in every election year, Myers said, this year, many trick-or-treaters will be wearing masks of the faces of presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama. When asked which mask was selling more, Myers said, `I’m not going to say. You’ll have to see in November.`
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