Bargain haunting: Scoring secondhand costumes ahead of Halloween

While costumes are easy to find in Halloween stores and online, some consumers are also turning to secondhand options.

Cheerful woman holding and looking at her Halloween costume — Source: fotostorm / Getty

INDIANAPOLIS — Are you still looking for your 2025 Halloween costume? While costumes are easy to find in Halloween stores and online, some consumers are also turning to secondhand options.

I visited Mission 27 Resale in Indianapolis. There, supervisor Maria Trejo took me to see the racks of costumes.

“It’s just so happy to see the kids getting so happy, being able to find a costume here in a thrift store,” Trejo described. “It just works out both for them and their parents as well.”

Trejo knows price is the main driver.

One shopper I ran into found quite the Halloween haul today.

“We just enjoy Halloween. So much fun!” said shopper Kendra Breedlove.

She tried on a witch hat and a new pair of gloves (which she boasted that she got for just four dollars total) while talking to me, and she also showed off the costumes she found for her kids.

“He’s going to be a vampire,” Breedlove continued while holding up her finds. “The shirt and the lovely cape.”

Her favorite part? It was a bargain: $7.99.

“Way cheaper than the Halloween store!” Breedlove said.

Customers like this have been flocking to Mission 27 in recent weeks, according to Trejo.