Supply Chain Shock: Why Halloween Candy is Out in Summer!

Get ready for “Summerween”! Retailers are stocking Halloween candy in August, but it’s not just an anomaly. Sotira CEO Amrita Bhasin joins FreightWaves Today to reveal how macro challenges like tariffs and changing consumer habits (hello, GLP-1 drugs!) are pushing inventory planning earlier and creating massive overstock issues. Discover why the reverse logistics of returns is a growing sustainability problem and what brands are doing to adapt their products and marketing to these disruptive trends.

Halloween candy appearing in grocery stores in early August is not a supply chain anomaly — it is a deliberate retailer strategy driven by tariff uncertainty and front-loaded import cycles, according to Amrita Bhasin, CEO of inventory liquidation company Sotira. Bhasin, speaking on FreightWaves Today, said May was the peak month for imports in 2025 and that she expects volumes to decline for the rest of the year, a view that puts her at odds with Port of Los Angeles Executive Director Gene Seroka, who has projected a robust second half for imports.

The early-season stocking trend — dubbed “summerween” by retailers — reflects a broader shift in inventory planning as brands scramble to get goods into the country while tariff conditions are more favorable. Bhasin said the dynamic now spans nearly every consumer goods category, with Christmas decorations also expected to hit shelves significantly earlier than in prior years. “Everything is getting pushed out earlier across pretty much all consumable or consumer good categories,” she said.

The candy and chocolate category illustrates the pressures compounding at once. Bhasin said a small bag of candy at convenience stores reached upward of $20 in some ZIP codes last year, driven by spiking cocoa prices. Manufacturers responded by overbuying, leaving excess stock that now needs to move. At the same time, GLP-1 drug adoption, consumer concern over food dyes — with some manufacturers pledging to phase out certain dyes by end of 2026 — and declining appetite for high-sugar products are all suppressing demand in the category.

“I think last year we saw a big return season. Returns the last few seasons have been high. Retailers are coming up with new policies,” Bhasin said, noting that some e-commerce platforms now track return thresholds and may ban repeat offenders regardless of the dollar value involved.

The returns challenge is costly across the supply chain. Bhasin said warehouses pay $1 to $2 just to scan a single returned unit back into inventory — a significant burden when the item’s MSRP may be only $8. She added that data shows 45% to 50% of e-commerce returns go directly to landfill without ever returning to a warehouse shelf. Sotira is working with retail partners to route excess and returned goods to nonprofits via backhaul on existing truck lanes, generating tax deductions for brands and producing impact reports that companies use in investor disclosures.

Overstock is concentrated in packaged food and beverage, Bhasin said, including cereals, protein and nutrition bars, and chocolate-heavy CPG items, across the past 18 months. The firm also sees growing excess in ultra-luxury goods — handbags and prestige perfumes — as consumers question whether elevated price points justify quality. Categories performing well include fiber-enriched beverages, high-protein products, and clean beauty items, where consumers have shown a willingness to pay a premium.

On the demand side, Bhasin pointed to GLP-1 adoption as a structural shift affecting not just food but broader consumer behavior, including reduced impulse buying. She said the behavioral changes tied to these drugs are “underappreciated” and could reshape how brands market and procure products well beyond the grocery aisle. With overstock volumes already elevated and consumer spending pulling back in recent months, she argued that the inventory already sitting in U.S. distribution centers may be sufficient to supply demand through the remainder of the year.

• Sotira CEO Amrita Bhasin says May 2025 was the peak for U.S. imports and expects volumes to decline through year-end, as tariff-driven front-loading has already stocked domestic warehouses.
• Halloween candy and seasonal goods are hitting shelves in summer as retailers compress planning cycles to hedge against tariff costs and weakening consumer spending.
• 45% to 50% of e-commerce returns go directly to landfill, and warehouse processing costs of $1 to $2 per unit are pushing brands to explore backhaul donation routes for excess inventory.

This Summary is generated thanks to a transcription of the interview, for the full interview please enjoy the video above.