Back in 2003, some wild-brained beverage executives decided to pour espresso on pumpkin pie, and it became the recipe for a cultural phenomenon now known simply as “PSL.”
Prior to the limited release of Starbucks‘ now-iconic Pumpkin Spice Latte that October, pumpkin was largely relegated to Halloween decorations and Thanksgiving desserts. But now, 20 years and more than 600 million PSLs later, pumpkin spice has become ubiquitous with not just fall, but all things in the fall, from Oreos to air freshener.
According to NielsenIQ, pumpkin spice products amassed roughly $802 million in sales last fiscal year — and that’s not counting coffee shop or restaurant menu items.
Despite that sugar high, some sources believe pumpkin may have hit its peak. In an August 2023 article, Fortune notes that unit sales dropped 1.5% last fiscal year after flatlining the year before. Meanwhile, the number of pumpkin spice products decreased 5% over the past two fiscal years.
Spam and ramen noodles may no longer be counted among the more than 3,000 pumpkin spice-flavored products available (thank goodness), but there are still plenty of offshoots and PSLs to be had, with virtually every coffee shop offering its own take. The trend isn’t going anywhere; rather, it’s matured into a part of daily life with (slightly) more appropriate products, whether that be Philadelphia cream cheese or Poo-Pourri. This season, searches for “pumpkin spice makeup” and “pumpkin spice nails” are trending alongside “pumpkin spice donuts” and “pumpkin spice Cheerios,” illustrating the phenomenon’s infiltration into American culture.