These are the two carnival costumes sold out in Alicante stores

A mere three days remain until the celebration of the Ramblero Saturday of the Alicante carnival, and the city's traditional shops are barely experiencing a surge in costume sales. "Sales are declining dramatically," they say.

This precarious situation affecting the viability of businesses persists in two classic costume shops, Magesbi and Mundi Fiesta. Despite the distressing scenario, two models have already sold out for this year's carnival in Alicante.

One of them is the jumpsuits from the series 'Squid Game', which have seen a resurgence with its second season. "A year ago, they went unnoticed," explains Abraham Navarro. It was only this Saturday that a supplier delivered a few to the Magesbi store in Altozano, and they have been a hit, especially among children.

The same is happening in the heart of Luceros, at the Mundi Fiesta store. Carmen González, always behind the counter with her husband Pedro Ángel Uriarte, highlights the popularity of this costume. "We were caught off guard," she admits regarding the reception from suppliers.

As a result, creativity has been sparked, and the store is using 'Money Heist' jumpsuits to meet this demand. "We combine them with masks from 'Squid Game'," she details.

The same trend is seen at Magesbi, where a highly requested costume by Alicante schools and groups of friends is related to the movie 'Inside Out'. "There isn't an official costume, but they use a tutu of one colour and a t-shirt of another to represent each emotion," Navarro notes about this makeshift solution.

Another sold-out costume for the Ramblero Saturday of the Alicante carnival is the prisoner outfit. "The typical orange jumpsuits, reminiscent of Guantanamo." Navarro thought it was a passing trend, but "they continue to be popular, and our suppliers are completely out of stock."

This carnival costume is also in demand at the Mundi Fiesta store, and along with Magesbi, there are many requests for "classics" such as superheroes, nuns, priests, animals, clowns, and pirates.

Both costume shops in Alicante lament that "the carnival is just starting to pick up now," during the last week of February, despite "this year it fell later." This, along with competition from bazaars and the internet, jeopardizes these types of establishments, which, like Mundi Fiesta, will close permanently in the coming weeks.

In the case of Magesbi, Navarro emphasizes that these types of specialized stores are in danger, as consumers come with costumes bought from bazaars or online and only seek "one-euro" products to paint their faces. "They don't risk buying them from other establishments, but selling only that is not viable."