Cookie hustlers, swathed in badges and Brownie uniforms, operate one of the last door-to-door businesses in the U.S.—and with success. Last year, the Scouts sold 207 million boxes of the classic confections. But in cookie land, some cities are sweeter than others.
To find out which region has the strongest affinity for the cookies, as well as a robust Scout membership, The Daily Beast reached out to the Girl Scouts. The organization provided data on Scout membership as of September 2011 and last season’s cookie sales for more than 100 American chapters. To calculate which areas are the cookie capitals, the boxes-per-Scout statistic was weighted 50 percent of the final rank and the statistics on sale participation and membership were each weighted 25 percent. In other words, these are the cities where Scouts are strong, but the sales ethic (or hunger for the annual treats) reigns supreme.
Girl Scouts of the USA ; Getty Images
Council: Heart of the South
Girl Scout membership: 10,981
Percent of Scouts that participated in 2011 cookie sale: 68.6%
Average boxes sold per Scout: 186.3
Council: Central Texas
Girl Scout membership: 20,094
Percent of Scouts that participated in 2011 cookie sale: 67.1%
Average boxes sold per Scout: 174.6
Council: Western Washington
Girl Scout membership: 26,196
Percent of Scouts that participated in 2011 cookie sale: 78.1%
Average boxes sold per Scout: 149.5
Council: Arizona Cactus
Girl Scout membership: 25,247
Percent of Scouts that participated in 2011 cookie sale: 74.1%
Average boxes sold per Scout: 159.1
Council: Eastern Pennsylvania
Girl Scout membership: 40,855
Percent of Scouts that participated in 2011 cookie sale: 72.4%
Average boxes sold per Scout: 139.1
Council: Greater Chicago and Northwest Indiana
Girl Scout membership: 86,695
Percent of Scouts that participated in 2011 cookie sale: 61.0%
Average boxes sold per Scout: 85.3
Council: Greater Atlanta
Girl Scout membership: 41,916
Percent of Scouts that participated in 2011 cookie sale: 83.1%
Average boxes sold per Scout: 122.5
Council: Northeast Texas
Girl Scout membership: 34,455
Percent of Scouts that participated in 2011 cookie sale: 68.9%
Average boxes sold per Scout: 157.5
Council: Montana and Wyoming
Girl Scout membership: 7,644
Percent of Scouts that participated in 2011 cookie sale: 91.0%
Average boxes sold per Scout: 167.4
Council: Northern California
Girl Scout membership: 47,071
Percent of scouts that participated in 2011 cookie sale: 68.1%
Average boxes sold per scout: 142.3
Council: Greater Los Angeles
Girl Scout membership: 41,130
Percent of Scouts that participated in 2011 cookie sale: 72.2%
Average boxes sold per Scout: 145.7
Council: Diamonds of Arkansas, Oklahoma and Texas
Girl Scout membership: 12,305
Percent of scouts that participated in 2011 cookie sale: 69.6%
Average boxes sold per scout: 194.7
Council: Pines to the Gulf
Girl Scout membership: 7,987
Percent of Scouts that participated in 2011 cookie sale: 62.7%
Average boxes sold per Scout: 212.4
Council: North Carolina Coastal Pines
Girl Scout membership: 33,425
Percent of Scouts that participated in 2011 cookie sale: 42.7%
Average boxes sold per Scout: 206.9
Council: Texas/Oklahoma Pines
Girl Scout membership: 23,611
Percent of Scouts that participated in 2011 cookie sale: 48.8%
Average boxes sold per Scout: 216.8
Council: San Jacinto
Girl Scout membership: 66,998
Percent of Scouts that participated in 2011 cookie sale: 46.1%
Average boxes sold per Scout: 154.2
Council: South Carolina Mountains to Midlands
Girl Scout membership: 12,583
Percent of Scouts that participated in 2011 cookie sale: 67.2%
Average boxes sold per Scout: 209.9
Council: Historic Georgia
Girl Scout membership: 14,793
Percent of Scouts that participated in 2011 cookie sale: 74.7%
Average boxes sold per Scout: 197.1
Council: Desert Southwest
Girl Scout membership: 8,668
Percent of Scouts that participated in 2011 cookie sale: 38.4%
Average boxes sold per Scout: 260.8
Council: Farthest North
Girl Scout membership: 915
Percent of Scouts that participated in 2011 cookie sale: 74.3%
Average boxes sold per Scout: 228
Council: Colorado
Girl Scout membership: 30,718
Percent of scouts that participated in 2011 cookie sale: 75.0%
Average boxes sold per scout: 181.5
Council: New Mexico Trails
Girl Scout membership: 4,904
Percent of scouts that participated in 2011 cookie sale: 77.5%
Average boxes sold per scout: 218.5
Council: Midwest River Valleys
Girl Scout membership: 44,854
Percent of Scouts that participated in 2011 cookie sale: 79.0%
Average boxes sold per Scout: 166.6
Council: San Gorgonio
Girl Scout membership: 9,597
Percent of Scouts that participated in 2011 cookie sale: 86.5%
Average boxes sold per Scout: 254.6
Council: Utah
Girl Scout membership: 8,414
Percent of scouts that participated in 2011 cookie sale: 60.4%
Average boxes sold per scout: 304.4
