Image: Marit & Toomas Hinnosaar/Flickr
In case you thought Girl Scout cookies were immune to strategic cost-cutting, they’re not. The Atlantic reports:
This year, Girl Scouts is rolling out a pilot program that will try to increase profits by doing the unthinkable: cutting its cookie offerings to a slim six. Don’t worry if your mouth waters for Thin Mints, Samoas, Tagalongs, Trefoils, Do-Si-Dos, or Lemon Chalet Cremes. Those flavors survived the girls’ axe. Other flavors like Dulce de Leche and Thank U Berry Much weren’t so lucky.
The great cookie cutting of 2011 is part of an ongoing “efficiency” campaign at Girl Scouts to consolidate membership and boost profit at a time when youth organizations are struggling to keep all their girls and sell some of their cookies.
“For decades, councils were left with large inventories for cookies outside the most popular five or six,” said Amanda Hamaker, manager of product sales. “Councils saw this pilot as a way to experiment with their consumers to see if they could sell the same number of cookies with fewer varieties.”
Girl Scout membership has fallen in recent years, mostly because “Facebook has replaced the campfire,” according to writer Derek Thompson.
By the way, if you’re feeling the need for Thin Mints but can’t find any pint-sized saleswomen nearby, try out the Girl Scouts’ new Cookie Locator app.
