(Image credit: Unsplash)
According to Numerator’s holiday preview, Halloween is the only occasion where dollar channels take the top spot, with discount retailers gaining some ground on mass merchants.
The survey of approximately 2,100 consumers conducted last month shows that 57% of shoppers will use dollar channels such as Dollarama for Halloween purchases, compared with 51% for mass retailers such as Walmart and Giant Tiger and 48% for grocery stores.
Dollar channels were also Numerator’s most popular Halloween-shopping destination in 2024 at 55%, ahead of mass retailers (51%) and grocery (48%).
Consumer intent to celebrate Halloween is down slightly in 2025 year over year falling to 59% from 63%.
Of the shoppers that responded they intend to celebrate Oct. 31, 67% reported they will hand out candy.
A fifth of Halloween shoppers said they expect to spend between $26 and $50 on their holiday items, while about a third said they’ll spend more than $100. Numerator projects Halloween spending in 2025 to be on par with last year.
(Image credit: Pexels)
Christmas shoppers opt for mass
For the segment celebrating Christmas, mass channels came in as the most popular planned shopping destination at 57%. Dollar outlets fell to fifth place for the December holiday at 37%, while online only and grocery tied for second place at 47% and liquor stores took third at 44%.
Christmas is the most widely celebrated holiday at 90%. Seventy-one per cent of respondents plan to purchase gifts, 62% plan to decorate their homes and 60% plan to cook or bake.
General gifts (81%), food (76%) and alcohol (50%) came in as the most popular purchase items for the time of year. Wine is the top choice among those who plan to purchase alcohol for Christmas at 70%, followed by beer (57%) and spirits (47%).
In line with previous years, gift cards top the Christmas gift list at 68%, followed by toys and games (45%) and food excluding alcohol (43%).
Although the majority of Canadian shoppers (62%) expect to spend $200 or more on Christmas items this year, nearly a quarter (23%) say they’ll be spending less this year compared with 2024.
