HOLDEN — On Tuesday afternoon, just three days before July Fourth, a steady stream of shoppers visited Phantom Fireworks, Maine’s newest branch of the fireworks retail giant that has almost 70 stores across the country.

“We’re going to have a celebration,” said Chris Alderson of Searsmont who was perusing the fireworks with his family.

Alderson said this was the first time his family had bought fireworks and that they planned to set them off on Saturday night in a clearing by their house.

Fireworks sales in Maine during the past 12 months decreased by $2.1 million compared with the previous 12 months, but that hasn’t stopped an increase in the number of stores popping up across the state.

The law legalizing fireworks in Maine went into effect on Jan. 1, 2012, and within a year 16 stores were licensed, according to the fire marshal’s report to the Legislature on the first year of the sale and use of consumer fireworks.

This year, three new stores opened bringing the total number to 21, according to Tim Fuller the Maine State Fire Marshal’s inspection supervisor.

Fuller noted that there are four in the area surrounding Bangor — one in Old Town and three on Route 1A in Brewer and Holden.

Most of the shoppers at Phantom Fireworks on Tuesday afternoon said they were first-time fireworks buyers and were just looking for small explosives to set off with a few friends and family.

But on a blackboard at the front of the store was a list of heavy hitters — clients who had spent over $1,000 on the fireworks during the past few weeks.

The biggest buyer was listed as anonymous and had spent $4,400, which usually would amount to $11,000 worth of explosives without the discounts the store is currently offering, according to Flint Spaulding, the store manager.

In total, Mainers spent less this year than last year on fireworks, which generated less tax revenue for the state even though the sales tax rate went up from 5 percent to 5.5 percent on Oct. 1, 2013.

Between June 2013 and May 2014, $5.5 million worth of consumer fireworks were sold, which resulted in $278,083 in sales tax revenue, according to data from the Department of Administrative and Financial Services.

That’s compared with $7.6 million spent between June 2012 and May 2013, which generated $380,498 in sales tax revenue.

“I think the big rage and the surge is kind of over,” said Fuller, speaking from his experience working with retailers across the state.

Though sales are down this year, they still exceed the $125,000 in sales tax revenues David Heidrich, assistant director of communication for the revenue service, told the Bangor Daily News the state had expected.

“They were just crazy with selling stuff and couldn’t keep it on the shelves,” Fuller said about the first two years after the law went into effect.

“It kind of looks as though they’re falling into a pattern” this year, he said.

Spaulding, the manager of the store in Holden, said the number of sales has increased steadily since the store opened in May. He attributes some of the traffic to the buy-one-get-one-free deal that the store is offering.

The shopping experience at Phantom Fireworks has a few distinctive features. As shoppers approach the store, they are greeted by a security guard who asks whether they have matches or lighter on them.

Upon entering the store, shoppers must register, indicating that they are over 21 and will use the products safely.

Inside, about five salespeople wander among stacks of brightly-colored boxes and canisters bearing names such as “Grounds for Divorce” and “Poopy Pooch.” They are equipped with tablets that can show customers videos of each of the products in action.

Assistant Manager Mike Brockett said the Excalibur, a $179 explosive that shoots up 250 feet, is one of the most popular fireworks.

Holden, like many Maine towns, passed an ordinance restricting the time frame during which fireworks can be used.

“It certainly can be annoying to people,” Gene Worcester, chief of the Holden Police Department, said of consumer fireworks.

Worcester added that there had been no violations of the law and the police department had issued only a few warnings.

Worcester’s bigger concern this weekend? The 30,000 plus cars traveling through town on their way to Mount Desert Island.

More fireworks

• How to get the best (and safest) bang for your buck when buying fireworks 
• When & where to see public fireworks displays
• Maine starting to track fireworks-related injuries

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