Sweet ending for the annual Girl Guide cookie campaign after physical distancing measures cancelled door-to-door sales

 Over $900,000 raised for Girl Guides of Canada through retail cookie sales at London Drugs

Diamond Isinger, Girl Guides Canada (LEFT) and Clint Mahlman, London Drugs President and Chief Operating Officer (RIGHT). London Drugs presents cheque to Girl Guides Canada for cookies sold during the pandemic. Girl Guides Canada gave a cookie tin as thanks to London Drugs. The cookies are now sold out at most London Drugs stores.

RICHMOND, B.C.- September 9, 2020 – Girl Guide cookie sales at Western Canadian retailer London Drugs have raised over $900,000 for the Girl Guides of Canada since March. After COVID-19 halted the Girl Guides’ largest fundraising campaign of the year, London Drugs opened up shelf space to safely distribute the cookies through all of its 82 stores across Western Canada and online at LondonDrugs.com. Over 180,000 boxes of cookies were sold, with 100 per cent of the funds raised from the sale of the cookies going back to the organization.

The annual cookie sales campaign is the largest source of income for Girl Guides Canada, who rely on the funds to sustain their ongoing programs. Thanks to the generosity of London Drugs customers, proceeds from the sale of Girl Guide cookies will help provide diverse and exciting programs and activities for girls; and give them the chance to discover new interests, learn valuable leadership skills and make lasting friendships.

“We are grateful to London Drugs for providing us with a safe distribution network to sell our cookies, which has helped raise critical funds to support Guiding activities locally and across the country,” said Diamond Isinger, provincial commissioner for BC, Girl Guides of Canada. “It’s a sweet ending to what had to be a non-traditional cookie sales campaign this year”.

Traditionally, Girl Guides sell their cookies door-to-door, providing the opportunity to get out into their community and develop valuable skills, from teamwork and problem solving to responsibility. With physical distancing measures preventing door-to-door sales, this year was the first time Girl Guide cookies have been sold almost exclusively through retailers – a strategy that helped them sell 800,000 boxes of cookies that otherwise would have been difficult to distribute during the pandemic.

“It is a special honour to have been a part of this year’s unique version of the annual Girl Guide cookie fundraising campaign, as many families across Canada, including my own, have had a connection to the Girl Guides at some point in our lives,” said Clint Mahlman, London Drugs President and Chief Operating Officer.

The first shipment received by London Drugs was for 1000 cases containing 12,000 boxes of cookies in the Vancouver area. From there, London Drugs quickly expanded availability across Western Canada to all locations and made cookies available online, selling 180,000 boxes, totaling $905,540 raised for the Girl Guides of Canada.

“At London Drugs, we take pride in being nimble adapting to change and providing support based on what is happening in the communities we serve,” adds Mahlman. “Being able to quickly offer assistance with the sale of Girl Guide cookies during the COVID-19 pandemic was the right thing to do. And because our customers enthusiastically supported the cause by purchasing boxes of cookies at London Drugs, Girl Guides of Canada now have financial support to help fund their programs for girls and young women in communities across Canada.”

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