Girl Scouts of San Gorgonio Council had a record-breaking cookie season this year with 2,085,276 boxes sold council-wide. Last year’s total number of boxes sold was 1,753,148. The average boxes sold per girl this year was 252 as opposed to last year’s average of 234 boxes per girl. This is the second highest per girl average in the nation.
The Girl Scouts’ “I CARE” program also raised a record number of donations. Through “I CARE,” cookie buyers choose an organization they would like to gift with their cookie donation. The program benefits military service people as well as local charities such as food banks, women's shelters, Ronald McDonald houses and camps. Our slogan was “If you can’t eat ‘em, Treat ‘em.”
As a result, 164,600 boxes of cookies were donated through I CARE—an increase of 34% over last year. More than 107,000 of those boxes were donated to Operation Gratitude to be shipped to deployed military, the largest single donation from any organization ever.
It’s an incredible feat for a troop to sell 4,000 boxes of cookies. It’s absolutely astonishing for a single girl to do so. Yet this year the two top selling girls from San Gorgonio Council did just that.
Top selling girl, Caitlin Loret, sold 4,051 boxes. She focused her energy on booth sales, a mall kiosk and door-to-door direct sales. Caitlin will be traveling to Richmond, Virginia with three members of her family to visit ABC Bakery, where the Girl Scout cookies are made. They will tour the amazing facility, have lunch with the General Manager of the facility and discuss strategies for another successful sale.
Second top seller, Dakota Gregory, sold 4,000 boxes of cookies. She focused on the “I CARE” program, posting information to her Facebook and on door flyers.
How did Girl Scouts of San Gorgonio manage to achieve these record-breaking numbers at a time when the country is suffering from an economic downturn? “It’s because our focus is always on the girl,” said Elizabeth Locke Thomas, Vice President of Retail and Product Sales. “It’s about helping girls develop entrepreneurial, business, service and leadership skills that will last a lifetime. Each girl has her own unique sparkle and personality and we encourage her to express that in everything she does.”
Girl Scouts of San Gorgonio also offers cumulative incentives to girls at different sales levels. “The foundation of this program is to teach the girls that they can achieve any goal they choose to set for themselves.” Said Locke-Thomas. “We try to come up with incentives that give them the opportunity to do something that they might not normally be able to afford or experience and place them at attainable levels. They can spend a weekend on Catalina Island, receive an iPad or earn “Cookie Dough” that can be applied to things like going to camp or buying their high school class ring. The sense of pride and accomplishment these girls get from earning these things all on their own is absolutely incredible. By the end of the experience, they walk away knowing that they can accomplish anything they set their minds to.”
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For each box of Girl Scout cookies sold:
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Cali Girl Disneyland Experience
750+ boxes of cookies
544 Girls
Weekend at Catalina Island
1,250+ boxes of cookies
129 Girls
Apple iPad
2,000+ boxes of cookies
42 Girls
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This year 5,902 girls earned $366,789 in “Cookie Dough” that can be applied to things like going to camp, attending special events and buying their high school class ring.
