Halloween Costume Shortages Amidst Supply Chain Crisis

Julie Niederhoff, associate professor of Supply Chain Management in the Whitman School, was quoted in The New York Times, for the piece, “​​How the Supply Chain Stole Halloween.”

Niederhoff explains how the pandemic has led to severe issues within the supply chain. She says, ‘Halloween costumes are shipped in late summer, and retailers can’t necessarily capture late-breaking trends in a cost-effective way. Sourcing and producing a costume typically takes three months at a minimum if a company is willing to pay for some speed. Under current conditions, this would need to have been done six to nine months in advance.’