Not only is it popular, but it's environmentally friendly and for a good cause. We went shopping with three San Francisco State students in search of the perfect Halloween costume.
San Francisco resident Brigitte Ciss is spending her first Halloween in the United States. The student from France is scouring the aisles of Goodwill with one look in mind. She said, "I like disco looks."
Tracy Moreland of Santa Clara is on a mission. She can't decide if she wants to spend Halloween as Little Red Riding Hood or a librarian. She pulled out a sweater and said, "I think this is perfect, super great for Halloween with full colors and prints."
And like most other shoppers here, for Leandrea Johnson of Oakland, it's not only about the look, it's about the price too. She said, "The prices to me are extremely reasonable. You can even look up some brand names that you can find at the mall for maybe $50 and you can get it here for $10."
Her goal is to spend less than $20 on a costume and that says Goodwill is just one of the reasons Halloween is its biggest season of the year, bigger than even Christmas.
"The real reason is we have vintage product and you can put together incredible costumes because of donations," said Charles Turner from Goodwill.
Goodwill has plenty of accessories, along with donated homemade costumes. It also has an idea book to help you put your costume together.
"We have outfits that we put together, like the feather boas, and here is your witch," said Turner.
Leandrea likes the idea of being green. She said, "Coming to a thrift store its more sustainable than buying a onetime outfit and throwing it away."
"Oh, my God. There's a lot of choice. It's really hard to find like because there's so many great pieces," said Ciss.
So what did our three trick or treaters decide? The moment of truth has arrived.
"Hello, I am a 1950's librarian," said Moreland.
Her vintage outfit cost her under $40.
"I love it. I'm going for a stylish space cadet," said Johnson.
Ciss is going as a lounge lizard.
"I'm excited, I'm excited. Like wow. This is great," said Ciss, looking at the fancy shirt she found.
Ciss and Johnson put together their costumes for under $20.
For the best selection at Goodwill, get there early. They expect to be swamped with costume hunters the last two weeks before the big day.
