A Santa Claus will be harder to find this year in the United States, where Covid has killed many candidates for the role of the man in the red suit and the white beard
A Santa Claus to brighten up the holidays? It will be more difficult this year in the United States, where the Covid has probably caused the death of many candidates for the role of the man in the red suit and the white beard, hired at home or in shopping malls.
A few days before Christmas, one of the most important holidays in the United States – along with Thanksgiving – and especially in New York, Mitch Allen, founder of the Santa Claus employment agency HireSanta.com, laments: “ Unfortunately, we have lost a number of Santas in the past 18 months. We’ve actually lost over 335 this year. “
After a terrible year 2020, bruised by the Covid-19 epidemic, without public Christmas celebrations and with family reunions reduced to a minimum, this year “everyone gets together, companies organize events and shopping centers have brought back “Santa Claus to please the little ones,” says Mitch Allen.
Suddenly, “there is a huge shortage,” he notes during an interview by videoconference from Texas where he appears disguised in a green Santa Claus costume. He figures “more than a thousand” the number of vacant positions “for the rest of the season”.
“Hang up the red coat”
In addition to the deaths linked to Covid-19, some candidates, sometimes elderly, have “decided to hang up the red coat” and retired. In Denver, the Santa Claus Vocational School, which provides training, has also seen a 25% drop in applicants over the past two years, despite courses being taught mostly online.
“Over the past two years, 28 Santa Claus have graduated, compared to the usual 120,” explains school founder Susen Mesco. “Aging is an important factor” because most Santa Claus are “over 70 years old,” she explains.
Pension supplement
This trend should continue, warns Mitch Allen, who points to the fact that “this year we already have reservations for (Christmas) 2022, which has never happened before”.
According to him, his agency is one of the “biggest suppliers” of Santa Claus in the world, especially for Asia and China. Currently, “we have two Santa Claus in Dubai,” he says proudly. The clients pay for their Santa’s travel and accommodation themselves.
But Mitch Allen warns, “Not everyone can play Santa Claus. In the United States, in particular, “you have to love Christmas, look like Santa Claus wearing a real beard and have that sparkling look,” he lists.
In good years, working from early November to December 24, a Santa Claus can earn between $ 6,000 and $ 10,000, the entrepreneur estimates. A good retirement supplement.
–
