Shoot, I still need a costume. Where can I find a Spirit Halloween in Florida?

It must be fall, the Spirit Halloween stores are blooming.

Have been, actually. The bright orange signs have been going up over empty storefronts since July and the moans and shrieks of animatronic horrors have been heard across the land as the self-proclaimed leading Halloween retailer has awakened from its slumber.

This is Spirit Halloween's 40th year in business after opening its first pop-up store in 1983 in the back of a women's clothing store in the Castro Valley Mall in Castro Valley, California, according to a 2000 Los Angeles Times article.

"They laughed at me and put me in a corner hidden behind an old restaurant. When I did $100,000 in 30 days, they were astounded,” company founder Joe Marver told the Times.

The company has grown a bit since then. According to career guidance site Zippia, Spirit Halloween's annual revenue is approximately $1.1 billion.

What is Spirit Halloween?

Spirit Halloween is an oddity in American businesses, as it traditionally does not occupy a set, year-round location.

Instead, at the end of every summer, the company begins moving into existing, empty storefronts and rapidly turns them into creepy, brightly-colored festivals of costumes, makeup, accessories, and massive animatronic horror scenes suitable for freaking out and/or entertaining your neighbors. The abruptly moving displays in the middle of the store help add an amusement park destination feel, something Floridians can appreciate.

Spirit Halloween has become a pop culture phenomenon in the U.S., not only for its massive collection of costumes but as widespread memes for unlikely costumes or ironically abandoned locations.

The Halloween Spirit: How the retailer shows up each fall in vacant storefronts nationwide

How many Spirit Halloween stores are in Florida?

"Prepare yourself for the most epic Halloween experience imaginable by visiting your local Spirit Halloween in Florida," the company website says.

They're not quite as widespread as Publix, but it's not hard to find a Spirit Halloween store in Florida. According to Spirit Halloween's "Major Cities in Florida" map, there are 58 locations as of Oct. 3.

Where can I find Spirit Halloween in Florida?

There are currently locations in Altamonte Springs, Aventura, Boca Raton, Bradenton, Brandon, Casselberry, Clearwater, Clermont, Cooper City, Coral Springs, Davenport, Daytona Beach, Delray Beach, Destin, Estero, Fort Lauderdale, Fort Myers, Gainesville, Hallandale Beach, Hialeah, Hudson, Jacksonville, Jacksonville Beach, Jensen Beach, Kendall, Kissimmee, Lake Wales, Lakeland, Leesburg, Mary Estherm Melbourne, Merritt Island, Miami, Naples, Oakland Park, Ocala, Orange City, Orange Park, Orlando, Oviedo, Palm Beach Gardens, Panama City Beach, Pembroke Pines, Pensacola, Port Charlotte, Port Richey, Royal Palm Beach, Sanford, Sarasota, South Miami, Sr. Petersburg, Sunrise, Tallahassee, Tamarac, Tampa, Valrico, Vero Beach and Winter Park.

You can find maps and operating times at stores.spirithalloween.com/fl/.

How many Spirit Halloween stores are there in the U.S.?

Over 1,500 this year, bringing over 40,000 jobs, according to a company press release.

How does Spirit Halloween choose where to open?

Spirit tends to focus on locations where there are more than 35,000 people within a 3-5 mile radius and ideally looks for locations with 5,000 to 50,000 square feet of sales floor space, according to Drew Griffiths, divisional vice president, marketing and social media for Spirit said. But they're flexible.

"No store is too large – or too small," Griffiths told USA TODAY.

What are the new Spirit Halloween costumes for 2023?

It's not surprising Spirit Halloween is all in on Barbie, sure to be the top costume this year after the blockbuster movie. But the company launched lots of new licensed merch this year, including:

• Barbie

• Fall Guys

• Harry Potter

• Universal Monsters

• DC Villains

• Poppy Playtime

• Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

• Wednesday

• Mars Attacks!

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Spirit Halloween costume retailer has 58 Florida stores, here's a list