In the rather mundane stretch of time between late winter and early spring, one perennial ray of hope for many is Girl Scout Cookie season. On average, the nearly 700,000 participating Girl Scouts will sell around 200 million boxes of cookies each year.

In Edina, Service Unit 138 oversees multiple troops in the area, with some 400 active members in grades K–12. Freshman Clara Johnson has been participating in Girl Scouts since kindergarten, selling cookies for just as long. Despite a closer association with younger girls, Girl Scouts of every rank and age are allowed to participate in cookie sales. While many in the rank of “Cadette” opt-out or simply don’t have the time, Johnson has adapted beyond more “traditional” sales to accommodate her busy schedule.
“I sell both online and in person. We do booths, phone calls, post our QR code online, and ask people,” Johnson said. “When I was younger I did more door-to-door sales but now I don’t have as much time.”
While strategies vary from year to year, Johnson tends to begin her sales more privately, reaching out to family and friends she knows may be interested. Schedule permitting, there are sales to be found through social media advertising, which can lead to more in-person business as well as the newer, yet increasingly popular, online storefronts.

Even with the innovations in cookie-selling technology, much of what Johnson enjoys about selling cookies revolves around personally connecting with buyers. “I like convincing people to buy cookies,” Johnson said. “Some people are grumpy and it’s harder, but when people have an excuse, I always have a comeback…a nice comeback.”

Outside of the January to June cookie season, most of the work done by Girl Scouts revolves around community service and leadership. Girl Scouts of all ages work to earn the traditional Skill Building Badges in order to gain larger Silver and Gold Awards, the highest honors within the organization.

Johnson continues working towards such accolades while upholding the cookie-selling tradition. One perk of cookie selling—cookie eating. Her recommendation?

Adventurefuls, Peanut Butter Patties, and obviously Caramel deLites.

This piece was originally published in Zephyrus’ print edition on March 27, 2025