Large conglomerates and their consumer-facing service affiliates rushed to cancel Halloween events, Sunday, the day after at least 153 people died in a crowd crush a day earlier in Seoul’s Itaewon, according to market watchers.
The industry-wide efforts to elevate the Western holiday to an annual sales event with themed promotions and events will be significantly curtailed, since Halloween will be associated with the deadly incident for years to come.
Many expect excessive promotion of Halloween will have no place in Korea, as some critics have attributed the large crowds attending events on Halloween weekend to the commercial interests of businesses.
Household spending on the festival will subsequently dwindle, due to parents feeling much less pressure to buy Halloween-themed products such as costumes, decorations and candy.
Painful reminder
“We have canceled all events related to Halloween, lest they become a painful reminder to victims and their families,” an official of one of the country’s major retail chain operators said. “We have been ordered to take down installations and banners that celebrate the festival as well as remove products from shelves.”
Lotte and Shinsegae are among many local conglomerates handing down similar orders to their affiliates, including department stores, retail stores, outlets, hotels and hospitality service providers.
Parades, costume parties and music showcases and cultural performances were all canceled.
“No firms will dare bring up Halloween in the context of commercial events for at least a few years,” the official said. “It is such a tragedy that will haunt many for the rest of their lives.”
Earlier criticism
Criticism of excessive Halloween marketing toward children have been raised frequently over the years, with parents with young children among those increasingly bothered by the extra expenses.
“It cost well over 100,000 won ($70) to buy some brooms, hats and other costumes for my preschooler who wanted to be a witch at the kindergarten Halloween event, which I had to attend to wearing a costume,” a woman in her 40s said.
Many costumes are used for just a single day and are likely to go to waste afterward. Parents are essentially forced to buy items that will be thrown away, out of fear that their children might feel left out, said the mother of two.
“It’s all part of marketing that makes people spend money they don’t want to but need to. I have two children, so I can’t make them share, because they each need to wear costumes on the same day,” she said.
The pressure to celebrate the Western holiday was higher this year, in her view, because it was the first large festive gathering since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic banned indoor activities for the past few years.
The pent-up need to “have fun” notwithstanding, the recent sharp rises in borrowing costs and prices of goods and services are leaving parents frustrated.
“My husband’s monthly income is barely enough for housing, food and other daily necessities, which I think is the case for many. Halloween spending certainly does not help,” she said.
