Got a couple stories here.
Few years back, I only had my oldest to worry about. I was building a haunted house at the time, and working in it, and really didn't want to have to put in the time to make a costume.
Lord of the Rings was the big thing at the time, and Kyle wanted to be Gandalf. I figured it would be EASY to go buy one.
The stores get in their stuff.
(I'm not a LOTR fan, so forgive my lack of knowing names)
Elf dude: Check
Dwarf dude: Check
Ranger dude: Check
Elf girl: Check
Hobbits: Check.
NO GANDALF.
Sure, I could special order one off a website for $60, plus shipping.
Ok, I though, I'll make one from generic 'wizard' items, then.
Yeah, that yielded loads of Harry Potter stuff. Nothing usefull.
I ended up making him a robe from one of my long sleeve shirts, and sewing a hat and belt pouches, while de-barking a stick for his staff.
Now, last year, Alec (5) wanted to be "Black Spider Man". And, with him being black, Kyle wanted to be red spider man.
We found an awesome costume for Alec. High quality, so much so, he STILL WEARS IT while playing. And I do mean playing, running, sliding, jumping on the trampoline. Kyle's age, however, was completely devoid of Spider Man. In fact, virtually none of the chain stores had costumes in his size. Apparantly, you're supposed to stop Trick or Treating at 9. And, I'm sorry, Spider Man is a wee bit beyond my capabilities to reproduce. He ended up with a piece of crap we ended up special ordering that was fortunate to make it through the evening before tearing apart when he took it off.
Bottom line, yes, there is a problem with the costume business.
There are 2-3 costume manufacturers, and you are stuck with what they make. Every store gets the same basic stock. So, you get the same costumes for sale. Meanwhile, parents work more these days. Both parents work, get home at 6PM, and are fortunate to get the kids out Trick or Treating at all, let alone spending 30 minutes doing makeup, or assembling a costume. So, kids are stuck with the storebought stuff. And, they don't know any better when they are teens, because they've never seen a costume made.
Heck, I had my 15 year old neighbor actually ask me how to do a mummy last year. "you actually wrap yourself up?!?"
Uh. Yeah. Do it beforehand and pin/glue the wrapping to a pair of pants/shirt to make it easy day of.
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