Girl Scouts accept credit cards for cookies & offer locator app

The official Girls Scout Cookie Season starts January 20 and ends March, 25, 2012. During this 100th anniversary year, the Girl Scouts of Greater Los Angeles' local troops will take their cookie sales hi-tech. For the first time in the Los Angeles County area, cookie booths will be able to accept credit cards using a device from Sage Mobile Payments. The secure credit card reader attaches to a smart phone allowing troops to accept debit and credit cards, email receipts and even refund money to customers on-the-spot right from a smart phone.



The annual Girl Scout Cookie Program is the largest financial literacy program for girls in the nation. Started at a local event in Oklahoma in 1917, the program now is the leading business and entrepreneurial program run by girls, funding activities, community service and leadership projects during the year. The Cookie Program also helps girls who participate build leadership and money management skills, as well as teaches them business ethics. In 2010, over three million girls sold 198 million boxes to support Girl Scouting. To mark the Girl Scouts’ 100th anniversary, a new member of the Girl Scout Cookie family has been added―Savannah Smiles, a lemony delight cookie that pays homage to Girl Scout founder, Juliette Gordon Low who was born in Savannah, Georgia.



"Many customers would love to buy Girl Scout Cookies, but many can only buy one or two boxes because they only have a certain amount of cash on them, or they have to walk by the booth entirely because they have none on hand," said David Corey, Director of Retail and Product Sales. "We have obtained 1,000 of these devices to start for the troops. We hope that this will open up Girl Scout Cookies to new customers, increase the number of boxes per customer from the loyal patrons that come out every year to the booths, and teach the girls about credit cards and the importance of good credit―because Girl Scout Cookies really is financial literacy in action."

Credit card readers aren't the only hi-tech offering that Girl Scouts are using for their cookies sales this year, there's also the Little Brownie Bakers Girl Scout Cookie Locator app. The app lets customers easily locate a cookie booth near them where they can purchase the famous cookies. The Little Brownie Bakers Girl Scout Cookie Locator app works on iPhones, BlackBerrys and Android™ phones. The app is free and available through iTunes or by simply dialing **GSCOOKIES (**472665437) from your mobile phone.



About Girl Scouts of Greater Los Angeles

Girl Scouts of Greater Los Angeles serves more than 41,000 girls in partnership with more than 23,000 volunteers from over 350 diverse communities of Los Angeles County and parts of Kern, San Bernardino and Ventura counties. Girl Scouts of Greater Los Angeles is the largest girl-serving non-profit agency in Los Angeles. The council’s programs engage girls in the areas of Arts & Culture, Business Smarts, Environment & Outdoor Adventure, Science Technology Engineering & Math (STEM) and Wellness & Healthy Living. To join, volunteer, reconnect or support, visit www.girlscoutsLA.org or call 1-888-GSGLA-4-U.



About Girl Scouts 100th Anniversary
Founded in 1912, Girl Scouts will celebrate a century of leadership in 2012 with events happening throughout the country. Hosting the organization’s 100th anniversary float is just one of the ways Girl Scouts of Greater Los Angeles kicked off the organization’s centennial year, with a host a number of centennial celebrations, including Girltopia at the L.A. Convention Center on October 29 and a float entry in the 2012 Tournament of Roses Parade. Girl Scouts of Greater Los Angeles will host a Women of Distinction luncheon honoring former Girl Scouts and industry leaders in December 2012 and a council-wide Camporee in October 2012. For more information on 100th Anniversary opportunities, visit www.girlscoutsLA.org.