OAKLAND >> Girl Scouts of Northern California will kick off the annual cookie sale season on Feb. 1. Troops across the region will conduct door-to-door, booth and online sales for the duration of the 2016 season through March 13. The earlier date will give football fans a chance to serve Girl Scout Cookies at Super Bowl watching parties.
The Girl Scouts have expanded purchasing options for this year’s cookie selling season. In addition to using an updated version of the online sales platform Digital Cookie 2.0, some booths will now accept credit and debit card payments. Launched this year, Digital Cookie 2.0 gives each Girl Scout an online system to manage her cookie sales as an independent business. It allows Girl Scouts to accept orders in real time and activate shipments directly to their customers from anywhere in the country.
The platform was updated this year to include interactive features that improve customer service, track goals and analyze sales data.
“Cookie season is the largest fundraising activity of the year so it’s important that we’re providing Girl Scouts the tools they need to capitalize on every opportunity available,” said Girl Scouts NorCal CEO Marina Park. “With the new technology offerings of Digital Cookie 2.0 and the advanced date coinciding with the big game, 2016 will be a great year for our troops and they’ll be well-positioned to reach their fundraising goals.”
By selling more than three million boxes of cookies last year, Girls Scouts around Northern California were able to participate in robotics and coding events, camping trips, outdoor programs and leadership development activities. This year the Girl Scouts are hoping to surpass the $18 million they earned in sales to help fund more service projects and trips.
The 2016 Girl Scout cookie season is returning with everyone’s favorite flavors — Thin Mints, Samoas, Tagalongs, Trefoils, Do-si-Dos, Savannah Smiles, Rah-Rah Raisins and Toffee-tastic. All cookies sell for $5 each, with the exception of gluten-free Toffee-tastic, which sells for $6 per box. With each box sold, $3.95 goes to fund Girl Scouts initiatives throughout the year, including service projects, STEM education programs and outdoor excursions.
Cookie booths can be located by visiting ilovecookies.org.
