SPOKANE, Wash. — What started as Craig Walter simply taking pride in decorating his house every year quickly turned into him and his family owning Halloween Express after jumping on the opportunity to take over the business and bring it from Boise, Idaho to Spokane, Washington.
It's a business that took Craig's love for things that go bump in the night into something for the whole community to enjoy.
"I love Halloween because it creates memories for people," Walter said. "People don't remember the candy they got, they remember the costumes they wore and how it made them feel."
However, his love for the spooky season initially shocked his wife when she realized just how passionate he was.
"He lured me in with decorating for Christmas and then it switched over to Halloween before I realized," said Jill Walter, co-owner of Halloween Express.
Craig said the most rewarding part about this whole journey has been getting to do it every step of the way with his family.
"Without them and their support, none of this would be possible," Craig said.
Throughout its time, Halloween Express has bounced around to different locations throughout Spokane, but currently, it is in the former Macy's at Northtown Mall.
Through his love for Halloween, Craig has been able to create everlasting memories with his children.
"I love Halloween because of all the work my dad put in to make every year special," Jarret Walter, a manager at Halloween Express, said. "I remember just getting antsy at school on Halloween because I was excited to go home and get ready before trick-or-treaters got there."
Walter tells KREM 2 that the main difference between his business and other corporate shops is the customer service and different selection they have on masks and other merchandise that they source all year long.