Tanya Nahal (owner)
Tanya Nahal
As a child who loved to dress up and make believe, I was always fascinated by the spooky season of Halloween. This obsession with the magical fall season continued into my teens growing bigger and more complex every year.
Things really took off when I learned how to sew as a teenager. I began to make costumes for family and friends that became more complex as my experience and confidence grew. It became normal for me to host parties with graves, coffins and a many other forms of seasonal novelties every Halloween with a large number of costumes being my own creations. I even stored a black coffin prop behind my sofa; such was my love for the spooky season. Even party guests showing up without costumes quickly found themselves in a “Tanya approved” character or disguise.
It was around this time that I started to seriously dream about operating and owning my own costume business although I didn’t realize at the time how perfectly placed I was to begin it. Due to my husband’s work, the two of us had moved onto a farm called Aldor Acres in Fort Langley. The farm was more of a seasonal education centre focused on introducing children to farm life and dairy production. But what Aldor Acres was really famous for was its huge 25 acre pumpkin patch. Children from far and wide would come every October to take hayrides, enjoy the petting zoo and most of all pick their own pumpkins.
It was here that I took my first crack at making costumes a home-based business by setting up a tent and a small wooden shack the owners of the farm were nice to lend me. To be honest, I just winged it, and surprisingly it was a success. Parents, teachers, and most of all children, were impressed with the variety of Halloween items I offered which ranged from complete costumes to novelty items such as colouring books, candles, and my soon to be famous hand-knitted pumpkin hats. These hats are still the most requested item which sell out every year forcing me to keep a waiting list of customers wishing to buy them.
With the success of the start-up, I began to fine tune what I wanted the business to be. I envisioned a business where I could move from place to place sort of like the gypsy caravans of old. I would travel to where the need was, like town festivals and community seasonal events, bringing them a variety of fun and entertaining goods sure to spook up their Halloween season. I would also be flexible, able to “tone down” the spookiness of my items and tents to accommodate those who still wanted to celebrate the harvest season without its more bizarre and scary side.
Overall, my business has been quite a success, culminating in opening of a full-time all-year-round location in the heart of Fort Langley in October 2007. As that location became too small, I moved into a new location in the heart of Langley, which is where Hallowville currently resides.
