Miranda Pederson/Daily NewsDisplays from the Party 1 Superstore.

On a Wednesday afternoon, Erin Freeman browsed through aisles of werewolf masks, witch wigs and fake blood. But she didn’t plan to purchase anything.

“Costumes are expensive,” said the Western Kentucky University student. “I get ideas and make it myself.”

That attitude has contributed to sluggish Halloween sales for some retailers. Several businesses depend on Halloween shopping and owners hope they get a boost from last-minute sales next week, they said.

Halloween Express, a costume and decor shop in a large orange tent off Scottsville Road, has opened its doors in Bowling Green for five years. Sales have been steady every year except this season – sales are down about 10 percent to 12 percent from last year, co-owner Vickie Doyle said.

“We just feel like people are waiting until the last minute. The weather has been so bad and I think the economy has hurt a little bit, too,” she said. “Hopefully, we’ve got two more weekends, we should be OK.”

Halloween sales are important for most retailers, who usually get a temporary sales boost from candy, costume and decoration sales. This year, those sales have been “decent,” said Rick Shannon, chairman of the department of marketing and sales at Western Kentucky University.

“I think Halloween tends to be a holiday that is less recession-focused,” he said. “It’s one day; it’s a day for the kids and people like to get their kids involved in things.”

At Halloween Express, some customers buy inexpensive Halloween items and others drop big bucks. The biggest sale so far this year was about $600 worth of merchandise, Doyle said.

When it comes to Halloween sales, there are two groups of consumers. Some people spend a lot of money on decorations and costumes. But most customers spend few dollars – their biggest investment is on candy, Shannon said.

Most customers begin buying handfuls of Halloween candy the last couple of weeks in October, said Brandy Stinson, assistant manager of Target in Bowling Green.

“We do quite a bit of candy sales,” she said. “It’s usually the last couple of weeks of the month when we see a huge push on candy sales.”

But costume sales are a different story. The store tends to have several leftover costumes after Halloween, Stinson said.

“One thing you may see is more people, especially in the middle class, making costumes as opposed to buying commercial ones,” Shannon said.

At Balloon-A-Gram, a costume and entertainment shop in Bowling Green, Halloween business has been slow compared to previous years. Still, shop owner Nick Wilkins said he anticipates a last-minute rush.

“You get a lot of lookers. But next week we’ll be slammed,” he said. “Halloween is definitely a big, big part of our yearly business.”

Ladonna Miller of Scottsville always made her children’s costumes. This year, she has pieced together her grandson’s costume – Woody from the movie “Toy Story” – with items she found at yard sales. Her biggest expense is candy, she said.

“I’m a tightwad,” Miller said. “I bought $15 worth of candy for Halloween.”

Miller was shopping Wednesday for a fake raven, which she plans to use as a Halloween decoration.

At Kirkland’s in Greenwood Mall, workers begin stocking shelves with Halloween decorations around the end of July. This year, sales have been slow compared to previous years, store team leader Andrea Clan said.

“When we first got (Halloween items) in, nobody touched it forever,” she said. “Mainly I’m getting people who are buying one or two items to sit around.”

The home decor shop sells a set of three metal pumpkins, which usually are very popular, Clan said.

“In years past … I would sell out way before Halloween, and I’m still sitting on some of those,” she said. “(Customers are) just using what they had from the year before and not making it a priority this year.”