Pivot Paper - A Case for Girl Scout Cookie Commissions

“Virginia Woolf said every woman needs a room of her own, but I havelearned that first she needs the power to pay for it.” - Christine Merser 

Executive Summary

This Pivot Paper makes the case for the introduction of a small commission, 10% per box, for every Girl Scout who participates in the annual cookie sale program. While the cookie program is widely celebrated for developing leadershipand entrepreneurial skills, it stops short of teaching one of the most critical life skills: personal financial agency.

Girls are selling nearly $800 million worth of cookies annually with no direct financial benefit. Meanwhile, comparable boys’ organizations offer sales commissions or reward-based incentives. The current system teaches service, teamwork, and public speaking, but not the value of money earned or the empowerment that comes from financial ownership.

Drawing on historical gender disparities, modern data on financial literacy, and a powerful real-life story of a Girl Scoutwho became a national sales icon, this paper presents a path forward. A commission system could promote financialliteracy, empowerment, negotiation skills, and increased participation, without sacrificing the program’s mission or troopfunding. With minimal adjustment to the revenue structure, the Girl Scouts of the USA could launch a forward-thinking initiative that redefines what it means to teach girls leadership in the 21st century.

Let us begin with a truth that’s often overlooked. Without financial independence, there is no real agency. The ability todecide where to live, what work to pursue, and how to participate in society has always depended on access to money. Women have long been excluded from that access. Though progress has been made, the legacy of economic dependence still shapes institutions like the Girl Scouts of the USA.

So let us ask: why aren’t Girl Scouts paid a small commission for the cookies they sell? 

The Untapped Opportunity 

Every year, more than one million Girl Scouts participate in cookie sales. In 2022 alone, they sold approximately 200million boxes of cookies, generating over $800 million in revenue. Let that number sit with you: nearly a billion-dollarenterprise run on the efforts of girls as young as five. 

Yet the girls themselves, those tiny titans pitching Thin Mints door to door, in grocery store vestibules, and through digital campaigns, receive no direct financial compensation. 

Troops receive a portion (often 10 to 20 percent per box), which funds activities, but the individual girls, who are learning how to cold-call strangers and track spreadsheets, see none of that as personal income.

This is a missed opportunity of massive proportions.

Boys Get Commission—Why Don’t Girls? 

Let’s compare:

• In the Boy Scouts of America, scouts often earn up to 35 percent commission from popcorn sales, sometimes more depending on region and level.

• Programs like Royal Rangers and Trail Life USA, which are also boy-oriented, offer similar incentive models, including gift cards, direct earnings, and more.

  
  

Why is it okay for boys to learn that sales equals reward, while girls internalize that reward as abstract, communal, or something to be deferred?

“Girls are not just capable of learning financial literacy. They’re hungry for it. But they need structured systems that reward them for their work." - Christine Merser

A Real Story: Girl Scout to Corporate Sales Coach 

This isn’t theoretical. In the 1980s, a Girl Scout from New York City named Lynn shattered cookie-selling records, moving more than 25,000 boxes in a single year. Her success caught the attention of IBM, American Express, and other corporate giants, who invited her to speak to their sales teams about strategy and motivation. She became an unofficial ambassador for Girl Scout sales and a teenage corporate sales coach.

Her story was captured in a book called How to Sell More, co-written by Christine’s sister, Cheryl Merser. The book broke down her methods and mindset, showing that early sales training could rival the best MBA.

Let us say that again: a 13-year-old girl outsold adult professionals and was brought into Fortune 500 companies to teach them how to close a deal.

What if we’d also taught her how to open a savings account? To invest? To negotiate a better commission?

How many more Lynns are out there, girls with the grit, intelligence, and charisma to lead, if only we met their effort with just a little more faith and financial reward? 

What Would a Commission Accomplish? 

Imagine if every Girl Scout received a 10 percent commission on the sales she generated. This could be paid as direct cash or placed in a financial literacy account co-managed with a parent. At an average sale price of $5 per box, that’s 50 cents per box. For a girl who sells 200 boxes, that translates to $100 directly in her pocket. More importantly, this commission would yield several intangible benefits:

These benefits include....

According to a University of Cambridge study, most children form basic money habits by age seven. And yet, JuniorAchievement USA reports that only 29 percent of parents are comfortable talking to their children about money. Only one in four teens say their school offers any form of personal finance education.

While direct data showing how girls would spend their cookie earnings is nonexistent, an overwhelming 87% of GirlScouts say they intend to “give back to society” or “their community,” demonstrating a deeply ingrained value of reinvestment from a young age (GSRI, Having It All report).

When this youth orientation combines with broader evidence of women channeling financial resources into their communities, it makes a powerful case: allocating Girl Scout-earned funds to girls themselves isn’t just symbolic; it cultivates a habit of local reinvestment with real, generational impact.When money is placed in the hands of women, it creates a ripple effect by strengthening families, improving child outcomes, and fueling community growth in ways that rarely happen when men receive the same resources. Extending this logic to girls with a growth mindset underscores the need to build financial literacy early.

GSUSA has the opportunity to benefit local communities when we need this investment the most by providing girls with both access to funds and the financial literacy to manage them wisely from a young age. We’re not just teaching skills, we’re cultivating a generation of women who will reinvest in their communities and drive lasting impact.

Meanwhile, women are 80% more likely than men to live in poverty at age 65, due in part to early financial illiteracy, interrupted career paths, and persistent wage gaps. This starts early. Let’s end it early, too. 

Would This Hurt the Mission? 

Absolutely not. The Girl Scouts of the USA is a phenomenal organization that has built millions of leaders. This suggestion isn’t about weakening their community model. It’s about strengthening it.

The national office can fund a commission system without harming existing programming.

Here's how: 

• Reallocate just 2–3% of cookie revenue to commission funds.

• Partner with financial literacy nonprofits or banks to create a “Girl Scout Earnings Account.”

• Offer commission as an opt-in track. Some families might prefer traditional troop-only disbursement, while others could engage this as an economic experiment.

• Or better yet, seek philanthropic support for this next-level education initiative. Imagine the appeal for donors:funding the first generation of girls to earn money with cookies in one hand and a bank account in the other.

The Upside in Sales 

Incentive-based fundraising consistently outperforms flat-goal models. According to research from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, youth fundraisers offered small commissions increased their sales by up to 22% compared to those given only non-monetary rewards or flat goals. In a similar 2021 study by the Journal of EconomicPsychology, students selling raffle tickets with a 10% commission sold 18% more than their peers. 

The Girl Scout Cookie Program generates over $800 million annually, meaning that even a conservative 10% increase in average box sales per scout, incentivized by commission, could add tens of millions in revenue. More importantly, it would reward effort, increase engagement, and teach real-world financial lessons grounded in personal agency and entrepreneurship. 

Possible Partners and Sponsors

The opportunity to bring in corporate sponsors to a revised Girl Scout cookie program is both exciting and timely. Private banking is increasingly focused on cultivating loyal customers earlier in life, and there is no better pipeline than girls who are learning financial responsibility and independence through hands-on experience.

As the nation undergoes a massive generational wealth transfer, an estimated $84 trillion over the next two decades, more than $30 trillion of that is expected to shift to women. With this shift, banks and financial institutions are actively seeking ways to connect with young women early. A partnership with the Girl Scouts could be the perfect entrée. It offers a direct line to future entrepreneurs and business leaders, as well as their parents and communities.

Those young Girl Scouts won’t just earn money. They’ll also spend it, save it, and learn from it. Financial coaches and institutions would be eager to partner at the local council level, providing valuable education and tools to help girls manage their earnings and understand financial agency. Councils could invite in banks, credit unions, budgeting app developers, or local advisors to contribute. In short, the sponsorship opportunities, which include financial literacy, banking, budgeting, and spending, could far outweigh any loss of short-term cookie sale income to the national organization. 

Additional Thoughts ...

The following ideas are speculative, but grounded in lived experience and strategic foresight.

• We believe the very first year of implementation would yield a significant increase in cookie sales. The carrot of commission, a reward tied to work, could be a game changer. 

• We believe this program must launch nationally, not piecemeal in local markets. A partial rollout could create inequity and resentment. Imagine being a Girl Scout who earns nothing while your friend in the next county gets paid. That would be a PR nightmare and would damage morale.

• There is a powerful and growing ecosystem of women financial influencers, many of whom are committed to educating girls and amplifying women’s financial power. Bring them in, and you’ll have them at hello. 

• There are philanthropists who are laser-focused on empowering girls and funding projects that equip young women for independent futures. The opportunity to secure grants to build out this initiative is well within reach.

The Bigger Picture

Let’s not forget what money really represents. It’s not just paper or numbers on a screen. It’s choice. It’s power. It’s the ability to say yes or no, to walk away, to help someone else, or to invest in your future.

Virginia Woolf said a woman needs a room of her own and money to write fiction. We say a girl needs a box of cookies and a commission to build a life she controls.

What could we teach girls if we let them profit from their own brilliance?

We could teach them to value themselves, to understand their labor, to negotiate, to plan.

We could start turning the tide on financial gender inequality. Not with a TED Talk or a book later in life, but with Thin Mints, five-dollar bills, and a spreadsheet at age eight.

The Girl Scouts can lead that revolution. And we think they should.