Girl Scout Cookies: There's An App For That

You are driving around, and it hits you: You have not had a Thin Mint or Samoa or Tagalong for months, and there's not a Girl Scout in sight.

Good news: You can now use your smart phone, download a new app and find the nearest location of a Girl School cookie booth.

Two area councils—Girl Scouts of Greater Chicago and Girl Scouts of Northern Illinois—are part of a national pilot program that is testing the Girl Scout Cookie Program mobile. Cookie lovers will be able to use their smart phones to find the nearest cookie booths and a list of dates and times when the booths will be open.

In this area, cookie booths will be open Feb. 25 through March 20. All eight cookie varieties will be available at the booths for $4 a box, payable by cash and checks. Cookie booths are the final phase of the cookie program and allow people to buy cookies through direct sales to the public. 

The Cookie Locator app can be downloaded for free by calling **GSCookies (**472665437) from your mobile phone or by searching for Cookie Locator in the iPhone App Store or Android Marketplace.

“People often underestimate the number of Girl Scout Cookies they want to order and end up wishing they’d ordered more. Or they don’t know a Girl Scout who can help them,” Madelon Koerner, director of product sales for the northern Illinois region, said in a press release. “Now customers can download an app on their smart phone and find their favorite treats fast!”

The application uses either GPS or manually entered zip codes, cities or states to find cookie booths near the customer. The app will map those locations and add the sale information to the calendar. In addition to locating the booths, customers can learn about their favorite cookies, including nutritional value and ingredients. Cookie lovers can take a fun, interactive quiz to learn their “cookie personalities.”

Users will also be able to share sale locations, cookie information and their cookie personalities with friends via e-mail and on Facebook and Twitter.

“The Girl Scout Cookie Program teaches girls business and leadership skills. And this new method of reaching customers teaches them about the benefits of using relevant technology to achieve their goals,” Vicki Wright, CEO of Girl Scouts of Northern Illinois, said in a press release. “Girl Scouts also learn to serve their communities, so the purchase of cookies supports girls and benefits our whole community in many direct and indirect ways.”

Cookie Locator was developed by Little Brownie Bakers. Girl Scouts of Northern Illinois began an exclusive partnership with Little Brownie Bakers of Louisville, KY, in 2011 for three years.

If you’re not approached by a Girl Scout to buy cookies, you can e-mail cookies4you@girlscoutsni.org, and your cookie order will be given to a local Girl Scout. Customers can also visit girlscoutsni.org and use the Cookie Locator on the home page.

Proceeds from the Girl Scout Cookie Program directly benefit girls in northern Illinois, supporting Girl Scout programs, camp scholarships, volunteer training, membership assistance and outreach programs.

For more information about Girl Scouts and the cookie program, visit girlscoutsni.org.