Walmart appears to have removed a World War II-era German soldier Halloween costume from its website after criticism spread online, ending a listing that had already vanished from Amazon and Target. By Wednesday morning, the Walmart page for the German Soldier Costume was no longer accessible.
The item, made by Orion Costumes and sold as a German Army Soldier Adult Costume, had been offered on Walmart as a vintage-themed outfit inspired by the 1940s. The listing included a jacket, trousers with boot covers, a belt and a hat, while images showed a uniform resembling those worn by German military forces during World War II, along with a German flag behind the model. Screenshots of the costume circulated on social media after shoppers noticed it being sold through major retailers, and some users questioned why a World War II German military uniform was being marketed as a Halloween costume at all.
The removal matters now because Walmart was still offering the costume through a third-party seller on Tuesday morning, even after Newsweek found the item had already been removed from Amazon. Target and Walmart had also carried the listing before it disappeared, underscoring how quickly a product can move from sale to scrutiny once shoppers start posting images online. Newsweek contacted Walmart, Amazon, Target and Orion Costumes on Tuesday, but none responded.
Walmart has not said why the product was removed, and it is unclear whether the decision came from Walmart, the third-party seller or Orion Costumes. That gap leaves the takedown as a fact, but not yet an explanation. The company has faced a similar fight before: in 2015, it removed an Israeli Soldier Costume Kit after criticism online and apologized, saying the product should not have been available for sale.
For now, the answer is simple even if the reason is not. The German Soldier Costume is gone from Walmart’s site, and the people who raised the alarm are still waiting to hear who made that happen.
