Fourth of July Sends Sparkler Sales Soaring in Montauk

With Fourth of July just a day away, Montauk is swarming with beachgoers and shoppers. Joe Voltitello, the owner and operator of A Little Bit of Everything in Montauk Plaza for 34 years, took time from this big business day to talk about the hot holiday sellers.

Sky Lanterns, miniature hot air balloons invented in ancient China as a means of battle communication, are a common sight at festivals in Thailand, but have been sold here in Montauk for the last five years for $5.99 each. They fly for about 18 minutes, held aloft by the rising air and float where the wind carries them. Every year it seems A Little Bit of Everything sells more of them, perhaps due to their inclusions in popular films like The Impossible, Tangled and Melancholia. For Voltitello, they can be something of a nuisance, because almost every time he has to explain their set up.

“You have to have one person hold it from the top to stretch it out,” Voltitello said, “And don’t tear the paper or try to light it when its windy — they will catch fire.”

Other popular products for the Fourth of July tend to be noise or fire related. In Voltitello’s estimation, “Every kid is fascinated with noise.”

The most popular product is definitely the Pop-Pops or Bang Snaps, which A Little Bit of Everything sells at 49 cents for a box of 60. The little paper novelties, containing a combination of gravel, sand and silver fulminate high explosive, are a perennial part of the pyrotechnic celebration of the Fourth of July. Similarly the handheld fireworks sparklers, sold for 79 cents for a box of six, which send off sheets of red and yellow sparks, have been flying off the shelves in recent days. A Little Bit of Everything offers a special deal of 12 boxes of six for $9.99.

Another popular item is Mystical Fire, sold for $1.99. When the package is added to a bonfire, the flames change color creating blues and greens and purples.