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Blood money: City hopes Halloween novelty opens a fresh vein of cash

By Chris Cassidy

Staff writer

 

SALEM — Ed Berman will soon become the city's largest blood donor — but not everyone is thanking him.

The owner of Tropical Products, which manufactures shampoos, hand sanitizers and moisturizers on Highland Avenue, heard about the School Department's financial crisis and offered to make his own unique donation to the city — fake blood.

That's right, the company is donating more than 25,000 4-ounce bottles of costume blood to help the Witch City get tourists into the Halloween spirit.

Starting this summer, the city will wholesale these mini-bottles of blood to local shops, which will then market them to Halloween visitors. The label design is still being finalized, but one version contains the Haunted Happenings logo — an image of a witch riding a broomstick — and reads "Haunted Happenings Salem, MA Costume Blood."

The money raised, which could be between $25,000 and $40,000, will be reinvested in the marketing and promotion of Salem and Haunted Happenings.

The city is embracing Berman's gory gift, but some critics see it as nothing more than, well, blood money.

"The city will take anything for money," said Betsy Burns, who, until last month, was the co-chairwoman of the Federal Street Neighborhood Association. "I know the city is in a bad position financially, but really — have some self-respect. I don't care if the city's making money on it. I think it just speaks so poorly for Salem to be doing something like this."

Still, with an estimated 100,000 revelers converging on downtown Salem on Halloween night alone, not to mention the thousands that pour in each weekend throughout October, it's hard to imagine the fake blood won't be a moneymaker for the city and for downtown retailers.

"Everybody's going to make some money off it," Berman said. "This stuff is going to fly. ... It's going to be a great, touristy item."

"It's a really generous donation," said Kate Fox, executive director of the city's tourism department, Destination Salem. "It's a genuine contribution to help the city and express gratitude for the work that's been done throughout the city. ... I wasn't going to turn it down. At $2 or $3 a bottle, that's a lot of potential fundraising."

Witches vs. culture

Marketing Salem as a tourist destination has long been a tricky topic. While some feel the city should embrace its reputation as the Halloween capital of the world, others believe it should focus more on Salem's rich maritime, architectural and literary history.

Joe Cultrera, whose film "Witch City" critically examines Salem's use of the Witch Trials to churn profits and promote tourism, admitted he was speechless when informed of the blood sale.

"I thought they were trying not to push that image anymore," Cultrera said. "I hope it bothers people. It's bothering me. I don't think I'm really the only person that feels this way. ... It sounds like it does cross the line — to make $40,000?"

On the other hand, shop owner Christian Day, who also runs the Festival of the Dead, said the idea shows the city is willing to get creative when it comes to bringing in revenue.

"I think tourists will buy anything with the word 'Salem' on it," said Day, who saw sales of incense quadruple at his downtown shop, Hex, when he rebottled it and added the city's name to the label. "People when they're here want to bring home the energy of Salem.

"I can see where there's going to be controversy, because it's playing up the kitschy, spooky aspect. But it's a part of why people come here," Day said. "It's part of the allure of Salem."

Fox said she's already heard from many shop owners who are supportive and plan to sell the blood. But she also acknowledges that not everyone is on board, so she said she's tried to be careful about the way the city names and packages the items.

"We don't want to offend anybody," Fox said. "It's just a great fundraising opportunity."

Earlier this year, she consulted with a Salem State College professor, whose Economic Dimensions of Tourism class took on the marketing of the costume blood as a class project. The city is considering which of their ideas, if any, to adopt.

"The reality is Haunted Happenings is one of the largest draws Salem has for tourism," said Lorri Krebs, the Salem State associate professor who taught the class.

Tropical Products mainly produces cleaning agents, but recently discovered a hidden market for fake blood.

"It looks like real blood," Berman said. "It's like a nice, deep red, and it's kind of shiny-looking. ... This is our way that we can donate, and these guys can make a ton of money."

Staff writer Chris Cassidy can be reached at ccassidy@salemnews.com.