For more than four decades, Spirit Halloween has been synonymous with the spooky season. Every fall, the company transforms vacant storefronts into immersive pop-up shops filled with costumes, props, and animatronics that bring Halloween to life. What began in 1983 as a single store in California has grown into the largest Halloween retailer in North America, with more than 1,400 locations opening each year from August through early November.
The companyโs story started when founder Joseph Marver recognized the popularity of Halloween costumes and shifted his apparel store into a seasonal experiment. That gamble proved successful, and Spirit Halloween steadily expanded its footprint. By 1999, the chain had grown to dozens of locations and was acquired by Spencer Gifts, which fueled even faster growth. The brand became known for its ability to quickly occupy empty retail space, turning temporary leases into elaborate holiday experiences that draw in families year after year. Alongside its physical presence, Spirit also operates a year-round online store, and its Spirit of Children program supports hospitals nationwide during the Halloween season. Now the brand is extending its reach beyond pumpkins and skeletons. In 2024, Spirit introduced a new concept called Spirit Christmas, testing the waters with a small number of holiday pop-ups. The stores featured Christmas dรฉcor, ornaments, apparel, inflatables, and stocking stuffers, all staged in interactive displays meant to capture the magic of the holiday season. The experiment proved successful enough that the company is moving ahead with expansion.
In 2025, Spirit plans to grow Spirit Christmas from 10 pilot stores to 30 locations across the country. Many of these shops will appear in the same spaces that hosted Spirit Halloween just weeks earlier, a seamless conversion that makes use of existing leases and infrastructure. The aim is to offer customers an immersive Christmas shopping experience, similar to the theatrical atmosphere that made Spirit Halloween a seasonal tradition.
The decision to branch into Christmas aligns with changing consumer habits. Holiday shopping begins earlier every year, and demand for seasonal dรฉcor continues to rise. By leveraging its expertise in pop-up operations, Spirit is positioning itself to capture another round of seasonal excitement once the Halloween season wraps up. Whether Spirit Christmas will become as iconic as its Halloween counterpart remains to be seen, but the company is betting big on the idea. If the rollout continues to grow, Spirit may soon become a household name for two of the yearโs most celebrated holidaysโfirst bringing the frights of fall, then the cheer of winter.
