Nationally, Halloween brings in about $5-billion in sales each year with the average consumer spending about $66, but with the recession this year, retailers are bracing for scarier statistics.
Some shoppers plan to make their own costumes.
"I looked up on the Internet how to do it and I'm going do that; I think it's a little bit cheaper," Tyra Walker of Dover, Delaware said.
Some shoppers were hunting for costumes at Goodwill, where costumes sell for as little as $8.
Brian Cunningham of Goodwill says the recession forces people to consider thift stores.
"It makes people kind of think twice of maybe blowing 60 bucks on a Halloween costume when you can come here and put the money right back into the community," Cunningham said.
But while major Halloween stores say people are buying more accessories, they also insist business is brisk thanks to customers who just won't be spooked by the word recession.
