Girl Scout Cookie season is here. How to buy online, in-person in the Columbus area
With scores of Girl Scout Cookie cases stacked head-high in the master bathroom of their Columbus home, April Allender and her 14-year-old daughter, Sahara, show their family’s dedication to this leadership development organization.
Last year, Sahara sold 2,034 boxes — the highest total in the Columbus area among the approximately 1,000 local Girl Scouts of Historic Georgia members.
“It was really hard,” Sahara, an eighth-grader at Arnold Magnet Academy, told the Ledger-Enquirer, “and the work really paid off.”
April isn’t surprised by her daughter’s achievement.
“When she puts her mind to it,” April said, “she does get it.”
For the next month, until March 14, it’s crunch time again for the Allenders as they help raise money for their troop and give Chattahoochee Valley residents the annual sweet treat.
How she did it
Sahara was homeschooled last year, allowing her more flex time to run a booth a few hours per day during cookie season at 13th Street Barbecue. She earned a trip to Dollywood in Tennessee for her level of sales, but the prize was reduced to tickets for Wild Animal Safari in Pine Mountain due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“I was very happy because I really worked hard to try to get that trip,” she said, “though COVID ruined it.”
Now, she admits, attending school in person cuts into her cookie-selling time. Nonetheless, she already has sold more than 800 boxes this season to qualify for a virtual Broadway experience.
Sahara credits her family for helping, but the key to selling a lot of cookies, she said, is to put your booth where you can get a lot of foot traffic, such as a popular store or restaurant. During the pandemic, however, “cookie booths are really different because you have to wear masks and often wear gloves,” she said.
Other differences: More folks are buying the cookies online, and the Girl Scouts have partnered with GrubHub to deliver them.
Among the eight varieties the local council is offering in 2021, Thin Mints and Samoas are the most popular, and Toffee-tastics are the least popular, Sahara said. But some visitors to her booth simply donate their money without accepting any kind of cookies, she said.
Although the Toffee-tastics and Caramel Chocolate Chips are gluten-free, Sahara wishes sugar-free also would be an option for her customers.
“There are way too many diabetics and those who are on diets,” she said.
How to buy cookies
Those who want to buy cookies online can visit gshg.org and enter their zip code. Users then select from the troops in their area and follow the steps to place an order. Cookies can be shipped nationwide.
The website also shows a list of dates and times for in-person sales. The council will conduct drive-thru cookie booths at the Columbus Civic Center on Feb. 27 and March 6 from noon to 2 p.m.
Sahara’s troop plans to have booths selling cookies at the following locations and times:
- Feb. 12 at Steak ‘n Shake, 4:30-7 p.m.
- Feb. 13 at Ole Times Country Buffet, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
- Feb. 14 at Ole Times Country Buffet, noon to 6 p.m.
- Feb. 15 at 13th Street Barbecue, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Lessons learned
April is the leader of Troop 50149, comprising 15 girls in kindergarten through eighth grade. She devotes about three hours per week to Girl Scout activities. During cookie season, that increases to 10-15 hours.
Most of the boxes sell for $4, but the S’mores and Toffee-tastics are $6. The proceeds benefit the Girls Scouts, who give back to the community through projects such as collecting items for animal shelters or cleaning up parks, April said.
“Make it a better world,” she said. “That’s what we teach these girls.”
The troop earns 60 cents for each box they sell, April said — and the lessons are invaluable.
“It gives them the opportunity to learn how to run their own business,” she said, “teaches them how to deal with money, teaches them how to set goals and how to reach their goals.”
April has seen Sahara become more confident and sociable through selling cookies.
“She’s really opened up,” April said. “I mean, she has come out of her shell. … I couldn’t be more proud of her.”
