When It Comes To Halloween, Walgreens And Dollar Stores Pick Up Walmart’s Slack

Published on: September 18, 2016 at 6:54 PM

To many, the most wonderful time of the year is here. Meaning that the Halloween spirit is looming over Walgreens — sometimes even off-season — and dollar stores across America, putting Walmart’s shoddy selection to shame for yet another year in a row.

You can almost guarantee that this is how into the Halloween spirit Walmart is every year. Yeah. Just the ONE aisle. [Image by Jo Naylor | Flickr | CC BY 2.0 ]

That’s right! Walmart. Once the envy of the Halloween decorations world; one would have thought that a big-box store such as Walmart would have put more effort into turning several aisles into a riveting Halloween shopping experience, expanding their ghosts and goblins section for the consumer. But sadly, they’re no longer committed to the holiday.

Yes, it’s already a “plus” going to the dollar store anyway for just about anything you need, and because of that, the Halloween spirit goes a long way there. And if there is a dollar store closer to you than the nearest Walmart, save yourself a trip and hit it up first and you’ll be overwhelmed by their vast selection and “killer” savings, because you’re guaranteed to find things you never thought existed.

And unlike Walmart — while they brag about being the “everything store,” they hardly have anything at all compared to — not just one, but two or more dollars stores. You can hit up Dollar General, Family Dollar, or any other dollar store you’ve probably been too afraid to enter, before the spooky season compels you to do so.

A woman walks towards a Dollar General. She won’t be the same when she comes out! [Photo by Charles Krupa/AP Images]

And really, in comparison, look at the size of that Walmart aisle. You would think they would go all the way for the season. You’ll be lucky if your Walmart has more than one aisle for spooky stuff. After all, the Halloween shopping life spans is just for a month and a half each year.

If you still have doubts about the dollar stores, let The Consumer Queen set you straight . Even she throws a little “love” Walmart’s way.

“You’ll still save lots of money over buying at Walmart and Target!”

That still leaves CVS and Walgreens, who excel with their selection. Only the frequent shopper would know if they’re all carrying the same stuff, in which case they can stock up on backups and sometimes they’re even cheaper than that uninspired aisle of overpriced Walmart items.

Walgreens has Nightmare Before Christmas stuff at the end of the aisle. Can you imagine what you’ll find on the aisle itself? [Image by Mike Mozart | Flickr | CC BY 2.0 ]

Look, even Target is acceptable. They have a small section of dollar items when you walk in, which is worth checking out. Shoppers are always guaranteed to find some interesting and various off-kilter buys for the season.

But for being such a small store, Walgreens has got the “goods,” and there’s more incentive to shop there because in general, it just feels good.

Most Walmarts are sporadically unorganized and at times the buying experience, in general, almost feels like a chore. Similar to putting money in a snack machine at a public place, where you have to cripple your hands just trying to get something in your stomach.

The main difference between Walmart and all of the other stores during Halloween, is that Walmart is more about convenience, which they certainly have down to a science, but because of their high-volume attitude, they’re hardly friendly.

And yes, Halloween is about chills, spookiness, and scary stuff, but it doesn’t look like they were having much fun when they put up the displays.

There’s a disconnect between the fun that’s supposed to haunt an impressive Halloween section, to the stressful experience at the check-out line where there are never enough people to scan purchases, and even less people to help those in the self-check out line.

Most everyone going to a Walmart isn’t necessarily looking forward to it.

So there you have it. Walmart doesn’t have as much to offer as some of the other mentioned stores, so don’t waste any time and grab up some Halloween goodies before someone else does.

What are your thoughts? Do you feel that Halloween just isn’t happening at your local Walmart?

[Featured Image by Rusty Clark – On The Air | Flickr | Cropped and Resized | CC BY 2.0 ]

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