Home Depot was about to launch something big 鈥� really big 鈥� when the pandemic hit in the spring of 2020: a 12-foot skeleton.
鈥淭here were a lot of internal discussions. It was like, is there going to be this year?鈥� said Lance Allen, senior merchant of decorative holiday at Home Depot. 鈥淎re customers going to think this is in poor taste? Should we go forward with it?鈥欌��
Home Depot did. And the towering skeleton arrived at the perfect time.
鈥淣obody could possibly need a 12-foot skeleton, but everybody wanted a 12-foot skeleton,鈥� Allen said.
The retailer's gamble upped the game for decorations. A population stuck at home and wanting some semblance of community entertainment created a Halloween phenomenon that鈥檚 now bigger than any one store. (Others carry various versions of the larger-than-life skeleton.)
And as stores race to get the latest and greatest Halloween score out as soon as possible, superfans say it鈥檚 about time.
Halloween is celebrated earlier
Home Depot鈥檚 12-foot skeleton is affectionately known by fans across the internet and globe as 鈥淪kelly.鈥� When Skelly was launched, the thinking was that he鈥檇 be out for a week or two leading up to Halloween night, Allen said, the usual consumer behavior observed at the time.
But the pandemic changed that timeline.
鈥淓verybody started decorating in early October for something to do,鈥� Allen said. 鈥淎nd we鈥檝e really seen a shift in the market where now people are decorating for Halloween how we鈥檝e seen with Christmas historically, planning out decorations five to six weeks, two months ahead of time.鈥�
Mak Ralston, a Halloween fanatic known as , who posts Halloween videos year-round, has noticed the shift.
鈥淭here used to be a kind of a calendar as to when I would expect things to come out in stores,鈥� Ralston said, noting that orange and black and witches and skeletons used to roll in at the start of September, maybe mid-August.
鈥淭his year, I saw some stuff in stores for Halloween in June, early July,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 never been earlier.鈥�
For some, it's always Halloween
鈥淪ome average people who aren鈥檛 as invested don鈥檛 realize that for people who are really committed to both Halloween and the horror culture, they鈥檙e in it to win it like all year,鈥� Ralston said.
鈥淚 can post a video about a horror movie or about a Halloween mask that鈥檚 coming out in October in February, and people eat it up,鈥� he said.
Nate Rambaud, known as , started his channel by posting videos of abandoned stores such as Toys R Us, a niche interest on the video-sharing platform. Now with more than 440,000 subscribers, his bread and butter is a more spooky niche. He posts videos touring Spirit Halloween locations, which often occupy abandoned stores.
Rambaud has been to well over 300 Spirit Halloween locations in all 50 states.
鈥淗alloween is so easy to attach to. It doesn鈥檛 require anybody else whatsoever,鈥� said Rambaud.
Christmas 鈥渒ind of requires other people, your family. You鈥檙e out buying stuff for people. And then kids sit around and wait for Christmas 鈥� that鈥檚 really all they can do for Christmas,鈥� he said. "But Halloween 鈥� anyone can associate with Halloween and you can do it any time all the time.鈥�
As a result of the year-round party, Skelly鈥檚 had some work done for his fifth birthday. Allen said the new Skellys for sale this season will have more UV additive to hold up against the sun longer, along with a more durable resin mixture to withstand colder temperatures. And he now has a dog.
鈥淧eople are taking the skeletons on dates. They鈥檙e going out to the beach, he鈥檚 playing in the sand,鈥� Allen said. 鈥淲e鈥檝e seen him at weddings.鈥�
Jacob Humphrey, an artist in Texas, helps moderate . There is a little bit of healthy competition over decorations, he said.
鈥淎 lot of times people will say, 鈥業 know this is not as good as everyone else鈥檚, but I wanted to share this,鈥欌�� Humphrey said. Group members join to find like-minded fans, he said, "but let's be honest, people want to show off.鈥�
Why are so many people so wild about Halloween?
Perhaps it all has to do with a fundamental part of the holiday: children.
Humphrey was out painting his fence recently when a girl walked by. She told him his house always has the best decorations.
鈥淚 didn鈥檛 realize kids memorize that. And that鈥檚 really kind of a badge of honor,鈥� Humphrey said. 鈥滱lso, like, great, now I have no choice, I鈥檓 going to make sure I do a great job.鈥�
Ralston recalled that growing up, he was the kid who carried around a skeleton instead of a teddy bear.
And Rambaud, whose videos showcase Halloween animatronics worth hundreds of dollars, remembers a simpler time from his childhood that helped spark his love for Halloween.
鈥淢y dad used to make what he would call a spook tunnel. He would take cardboard boxes, like refrigerator boxes, and he put them all together and made a maze that we had to crawl through," he said. 鈥漈hat was our little haunted house."
To Humphrey, the holiday's appeal can be summarized this way:
鈥淗alloween is an extrovert day for introverts,鈥� he said. 鈥淲hy wouldn't you want to celebrate that?鈥�
Sallee Ann Harrison, The Associated Press
