A New Jersey Girl Scout troop has garnered national attention for setting up a cookie sales booth outside a cannabis dispensary, a move that reportedly left leaders in the Girl Scouts organization displeased.
The booth appeared outside Daylite Dispensary in Mount Laurel, where members of a local troop sold Girl Scout cookies during its annual fundraising season.
Dispensary owner Steve Cassidy told NJ.com that the idea was meant to serve the community like other neighboring establishments.
“The Girl Scouts pop up in grocery stores and other large public places,” Cassidy said. “They’re selling to the community and to our neighbors, and that’s exactly who our shop serves, too.”
Cassidy said the location drew customers to the troop’s cookie stand. He linked the sweet sale to what cannabis users commonly refer to as “the munchies,” the increase in appetite that can occur after cannabis consumption.
The dispensary owner said the cookie sale was successful enough that the troop initially planned to return for another scheduled booth appearance. However, Cassidy hinted that the regional Girl Scout leadership may have opposed further sales near Daylite Dispensary.
“It was about community, If that means the local Girl Scout troop got in trouble, that is absolutely not what we wanted.”
The specific troop involved in the sale has not been publicly identified. The Girl Scouts of Central and Southern New Jersey, which oversees troops in the region, has made no public comment on the matter. Business and Politics reported that Girl Scout troops in the area were initially “given a green light” to proceed.
The Girl-Scout-cookie-to-dispensary pipeline is not new. For more than a decade, scouts have stationed themselves near cannabis dispensaries to capitalize on the munchies.
In 2014, NPR reported on a San Francisco 13-year-old who sold 117 boxes of cookies in two hours. In 2018, The Root
reported on a scout who sold 300 boxes in just three hours. There are countless tales of entrepreneurial success by business savvy troop members.Girl Scout cookie season typically runs from January through April, with troops selling the cookies to raise funds for activities, travel ,and community programs.
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