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2012 Cookie Program Update 

GSEP Goal Progress 

Right now we're at 92% of our 4, 305,000 package goal. 4,014,576 packages have already been sold! Please share this with your troops and let them know to keep up the good work!

 

Important--Reorder Trucks Minimum

Nation-wide, there is a 150 case minimum for cookies to be sent out on trailers (due to the cost of transportation and cost of human power to deliver the cookies).  If a Council-Sponsored Reorder Station does not reach a minimum order of 150 cases, troops that have placed orders will be contacted by a member of the Product Program Team to arrange an alternative for pickup. Cookies may be transferred to a different location, troops may be asked to show up early, or the order may be cancelled-this is very situational. Thank you for your understanding.

 

GSEP Cookie Cupboards

February 27 through March 2, GSEP will open up Council Cookie Cupboards at three locations:

  • Shelly Ridge Service Center
  • Lehigh Valley Service Center
  • Valley Forge Service Center

These cupboards will be for individual package pickups only (under one case). If you need a full case of cookies (or more) please continue to place planned orders in the snap system or pick up your cookies at an unplanned pickup location. No exchanges can be made at GSEP Cookie Cupboards and T-8 forms must be brought with the individual in order for the transaction to take place.

 

The exact time-frame when these cupboards will be open is yet to be determined.

 

If you have any questions about GSEP Cookie Cupboards, please contact Amanda Harrity at [email protected].

 

2012 Mystery Tour: Rock the Mall, Washington, D.C.

This year the Mystery Tour is no mystery! We will be traveling to the National Sing-A-Long-Rock the Mall! at Washington, D.C. on June 9, 2012. Each girl that sells 1,000+ packages of cookies will receive an invitation to this event (siblings need to sell 800+ packages of cookies each to qualify). GSEP understands that many girls that qualify for the Mystery Tour will be traveling to Rock the Mall with their Troop or Service Unit. In order to accommodate this unique circumstance, we have decided to partially subsidize the trip for girls who find themselves in this situation. Girls who have qualified for the Mystery Tour, but are traveling with their Troop or Service Unit to Rock the Mall can receive a $50.00 credit toward their trip, on the condition that proper notification has been made to Barb Bankert by April 1, 2012. The Troop or Service Unit organizer for the trip to Rock the Mall must turn in the following information to Barb Bankert at [email protected] by April 1, 2012:

  • A copy of the bill for which payment/reimbursement should be made
  • The name of the qualifying girl and her troop number

Note: GSEP is unable to send a check directly to a girl; checks must be payable to a vendor (i.e. bus company, hotel, etc.). If the bills for the trip have already been paid, we will need:

  1. Proof that the girl has paid her portion (i.e. a receipt from the organizer of the trip)
  2. AND, proof that the bill/s for the trip have been paid (i.e. receipts from vendors)

GSEP will process and distribute a check in an amount up to $50.00 to cover the cost of any bill pertaining to a girl's trip who is qualified for the Mystery Tour, but is traveling with her Troop or Service Unit to Rock the Mall. The amount of $50.00 is equivalent to the cost per girl of the Mystery Tour bus fare, transit ticket and registration.

 

Also, this year, parents and guardians are allowed to go on the Mystery Tour with their qualifying Girl Scout, provided that they provide a payment to GSEP of $80.00 by April 1, 2012. Checks can be made payable to GSEP and sent to:

 

GSEP

Attn. Lindsay Guyer

PO Box 27540

Philadelphia, PA 19118

 

5=52 Customer Contest

Is a chance for customers to win a year's supply of Girl Scout Cookies (i.e. 52 packages!). For every five packages of cookies purchased, the customer has a chance to enter a drawing for 52 packages of cookies.  Girls can distribute 5=52 Entry Cards to their customers. Five winners will be chosen at the end of the Cookie Program. Please note that it is mandatory for customers to enter information in the second address field. If the customer does not have an apartment number, suite number, etc. please have them enter n/a. 

 

Deposits

Our finance department sent out an email to everyone who has not deposited up to 15%. Here is some important feedback that we have received:

  • In some instances, we have contacted the Troop Leader, not the Troop Cookie Manager. To ensure we are contacting the Troop Cookie Manager, please run a Troop Balance Summary Report for your entire Service Unit. The TCM should be listed as the primary contact on the left of the page. The leader, or alternative contact, should be listed on the right.
  • When posting deposits, troops have many options to select under "transaction type." Some troops have been selecting "troop bank deposits" option, which differs from a Council "deposit." The "troop bank deposit" helps troops keep track of what is deposited into their own account. In Snap, a troop deposit does not count as a payment and will not reduce the troop's balance. You can review your troop's deposits by running a troop balance summary report and reviewing troop deposits. If any of your troops have entered a "troop bank deposit," please consider reaching out to them. Every time a troop makes a deposit into the Product Program Account at TD Bank, they should, in turn, record this deposit in snap by clicking on the FINANCES icon, then selecting "Add New Troop Transaction." Under transaction type, they should select "Deposit" and note their deposit slip number under the reference field.
  • Some troops have been accustomed to depositing all funds owed to GSEP with one deposit at the end of the Cookie Program. We have already expressed the concerns we have about retaining large amounts of cash on one's person and stressed the benefits by making frequent deposits. Please encourage your TCMs to handle cash wisely and deposit funds when practicable. If a troop is unsure how much money will be owed at the end of the program, encourage them to deposit at least 70% of the total retail value. The troops profit will be finalized at the end of the program and there will be an accurate balance due at the bottom of each troop's Troop Balance Summary report.

Reminders:

  • Cookies are $3.50 per package-this is firm and non-negotiable.
  • When  troops are placing an order in snap, the reference number should be the red five-digit number located on the upper right-hand corner of the T8.