Texas Halloween Stores Online Review - Part 1

There's no shortage of seasonal stores in the Lone Star State. We've decided to create a three-part article reviewing the bad, the baddest, and the best Texas Halloween online stores in Texas. Although everyone may be talking about the State Fair, many people are scrambling to buy costumes for that day of ghoulish partying. We welcome any comments from both business owners and shoppers alike.

Rotten Three - Don't Torture Me

Lucy in Disguise

How should we describe this Texas Halloween online store, prima facie? Graphics are colorful, thematically relevant to the store's products. However, navigation is a little challenging since there are no uniform menu section for every page you visit that will lead you back to the home page. Not on every page that I visited so far.

Content-wise, I believe Lucyindisguise.com have done their job to creatively spice up their catalog so that online customers can have a wide variety of items to pick. Their suggestions for costumes are a great way to come up with ideas for any occasion asking for an awesome time to wear a disguise.

Lucyindisguise.com's online billing structure is set up, so that when you go to the shopping cart section, you go through the same process of purchase as everywhere else online: Input your buyer information, determine payment method, review your purchase, and then finish the order. But hey, there's one thing you forgot: you probably can purchase only items that are listed in the Entrance page. Otherwise, you will see this message on the Costumes page:

"PLEASE UNDERSTAND THAT WE CANNOT RENT OR SELL COSTUMES OVER THE INTERNET AT THIS TIME."

If it's Halloween time and you can't sell or ship costumes through the Internet, why did you even post costumes on your online catalog?

"THE COSTUME LISTINGS ARE INTENDED TO INFORM THOSE WHO WILL BE COMING IN TO THE STORE AS TO WHAT MAY BE AVAILABLE."

Bummer.

Arc Supply

I'm not really crazy about how this Texas Halloween online store is laid out. Yet I feel they have a few things to offer that you can't find elsewhere. One thing I noticed is, if they're selling party stuff and fun costumes for various occasions, why are they selling janitorial supplies?

Arcsupply.com needs a little bit of creativity on the navigational aspect of online shopping. I feel it would be a lot easier for the buyer if the categories are more clearly defined. For example: Put various types of costumes under the Costumes category, and put decor where decor should belong.

This Texas Halloween online store's billing procedure is standard. Just like any other online merchant, customers are required to input their buyer information. We know that the purpose of this is to make it easier for them to track your information, especially for repeat purchase through the use of cookies.

Their prices are very affordable. As online customers, of course, we all have to deal with the shipping charges, and appropriate tax since we live in Texas.

Denton Costume & Dance World

This is probably one of the most "underdeveloped" Texas Halloween stores online. (I am actually trying to be nice here; I could use a less fancy euphemism.) Underdeveloped in a sense that there's really nothing to see, no catalog, no pictures, no descriptions. Does the online store owner even plan on selling online? I realized that the whole purpose of this Texas Halloween store is only to be able to give information as to the location, contact number, and an invitation to inquire online as to what products they sell. Why don't they just get rid of the website and have the customers look them up on the Yellow Pages instead?

If you plan on selling Halloween costumes online, please don't do this. The word "torture" is bad enough, but this one is awful.

As a customer, I will probably try to inquire if they have Gogo Ren outfit, but I will probably be too lazy since I can't really browse all the 5,000 costumes they have in stock. Just like they were a little too lazy to post the costume catalog online.

So maybe I'll move on to the next Texas Halloween online store that will make me less...giddy with disappointment.