Why Consumer Mindsets Are Influencing Autumn 2024 Celebrations

With consumers craving innovation yet watching their budgets, how can retailers create impactful experiences that resonate this Autumn season and beyond?

For Halloween and Autumn 2024 Celebrations, new emotional drivers and distinct mindsets are driving growth for the home and seasonal decor sectors. Cultural relevance and romanticisation are top of the agenda during an unpredictable financial climate. 

In the UK, investment in Halloween has quadrupled over the last decade to over £1b [Statista] but consumers are seeking more innovation and excitement to keep them interested as the market becomes more established. In the US, spending for this fall occasion is predicted to  drop by 5% [National Retail Federation], with 20% of consumers planning to cut back on spending [Vypr] as the cost of living continues to dampen consumer confidence. 

In this article, we track the key drivers and mindsets influencing Halloween and Autumn 2024 celebrations and provide insights for retailers aiming to connect with their future consumers.

1. Indulging in Autumn 

The Autumn season has been developing as an opportunity for celebration and seasonal events for some time. The enduring popularity of pumpkin spice lattes, fall foliage road trips, 516k+ #fallvibes tagged TikTok videos and the rise of the #codeorange hashtag are just a few indicators of how embedded this mindset is in the mainstream. This is particularly fuelled by younger Millennial and Gen Z demographics. According to a recent YouGov survey, 32% of 25-34-year-olds say they plan to purchase or have already purchased autumn decor including candles, lighting and ornaments.

In 2024, the romanticisation of fall as a holiday season is fueled by several socio-cultural trends like a focus on rest, an anti-hustle mindset, a desire to find beauty in everyday life, and a stronger connection to nature as reminders of global warming become more visible on our feeds and news channels.

2. Anti-throwaway Culture

As an industry closely associated with ‘throwaway culture,’ sustainability remains high on the agenda for seasonal celebrations, impacting everything from packaging and decoration to product design. For 2024, Autumn and Halloween motifs and collections continue to blend in with general homeware trend directions, seeing speckled ceramics, marble, bouclé and checkerboard motifs applied to pumpkins and ghosts. Products aren’t as obviously ‘seasonal’ as they once were and have a longer lifespan within the home. 

For retailers, this shift can incentivise higher price points and for customers, their indulgence lasts a little longer. 

3. Newstalgic Fandom Halloween

Nostalgia is a key emotional driver for ‘kidult‘ consumers, as toys, games, movies and music remind people of the things that brought them joy in childhood. We are particularly seeing the influence of ‘newstalgia fandom’ on Halloween product ranges, following the remake of Tim Burton’s 80s classic, Beetlejuice. While pop culture franchises like this traditionally make much more of an impact in faster-moving beauty and kids sectors, we’re seeing it move into decor and homeware too. 

The partyware category is particularly set to benefit from this new consumer group as friends and families invest in decor for opulently styled movie viewings and social events styled around these key cultural moments within the home. 

Curious About Where Seasonal Trends Are Heading?

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