Learn More About Our Cookie Sale

General Information:

     The Girl Scout Cookie Product Sale Activity is a timeless tradition that provides girls the opportunity to learn a variety of important and empowering life skills, while providing our community with a nationally recognized, annual treat… the Girl Scout Cookie!
     In the programs earliest years, Girl Scout troops baked their own cookies and sold them to support their individual troop activities. By 1934, Girl Scouts of the U.S.A. (GSUSA) introduced the first nationally franchised cookie sale.
     Each of the 300 Girl Scout councils throughout the United States selects one of the three bakeries licensed by GSUSA to bake and distribute official Girl Scout Cookies. Each council determines its own procedures, selling dates and prices for their annual Cookie Product Sale Activity.
     In 1947, Broward County Girl Scouts (with a membership of just under 1,000 girls) held its first cookie sale – selling 5,000 boxes. Today, the Girl Scouts of Broward County, Inc. serves approximately 9,000 girls and 4,500 adult volunteers. And in 2007, just 60 years after our first sale, Girl Scouts in Broward County sold more than 705,000 boxes of cookies! Wow!

Where does the money go?

     The proceeds from the Cookie Product Sale Activity stay within the Broward County council and the Girl Scouts we serve, helping to provide ongoing funding for program activities. Each $3.50 box of Girl Scout Cookies represents the following benefits to the girls within our area.
     The troops utilize a portion of their earnings to support troop activities including camping trips, special events, community service projects, badges, and various supplies for their weekly meetings. 
     Proceeds also support council-sponsored programs, new program development, maintaining outdoor program facilities, and the training of adult volunteers.

Are girls/troops required to sell Girl Scout Cookies?

     The Girl Scout Cookie Product Sale Activity is a voluntary program. This sale activity is our most well-known and anticipated program of the year, and Girl Scouts are eager to take part in this annual event, however no Girl Scout or Girl Scout troop is required to sell Girl Scout Cookies. 

What do Girl Scouts learn by participating in this activity?

     The true value of the Girl Scout Cookie Product Sale Activity does not come in dollars and cents, but in the valuable skills it offers the girls. The experience they gain by participating helps develop self-esteem, and empowers them to be responsible adults who are resourceful, productive and strong. The core lessons include:

Teamwork
Planning and goal setting
Decision-making skills; how to prioritize
Financial management; the budgetary process
Effective, positive communication skills