Nearly everyone in the United States loves Girl Scout Cookies. Sadly, last year, thanks to the coronavirus pandemic, many had to go without. This time around, Girl Scouts from Virginia want to make sure everyone can safely enjoy the delicious cookies. How? By delivering them by drone. That’s right!
Girl Scout Cookies By Air
Girl Scouts from Christiansburg, Virginia, are the first to use drone delivery to bring cookie lovers their Thin Mints. As you might expect, it all started when the Girl Scouts of Virginia Skyline wanted to find a safer way to deliver cookies amidst the pandemic. Of course, in years past, the Scouts would sell person-to-person. However, last year, the group banned such activities to keep everyone safe. While cookie lovers could pick up their favorite Girl Scouts flavors online, it meant long waits.
Thankfully, this year, the Virginia Skyline Scouts have partnered with Wing Global, one of the biggest drone makers in the world. “Even with loosening COVID restrictions, the traditional method of selling cookies outside of grocery stores or shops is difficult this year, and sales are down about 50% from prior years,” said Lia Reich, the communications lead of Wing Global. “It was a natural fit to partner with the Girl Scouts to help out in this situation.” The company says it will help the Girl Scouts until the start of June, delivering at least 3,000 boxes by then.
Will drone delivery become the norm for Girl Scouts around the country? Only time will tell…
The Future Of Drone Delivery
As you might imagine, the Girl Scouts have done much more than simply ship cookies via drone. Nikki Williams, CEO of Girl Scouts of Virginia Skyline Council, said that the Scouts’ leaders are using this as a chance to teach the young girls all about drones, an emerging technology sure to become more common in the coming decades. Meanwhile, customers also love the drones! “We’re seeing a nice response as people are learning about it,” Williams said.
Of course, drones are not the only way to receive Girl Scout cookies in that area. They have also partnered with GrubHub and even designed a Cookie Drive-Thru. “The great thing about Girl Scouts is that we’re flexible and innovative,” said Betty Garger, president and CEO of Girl Scouts of Northern New Jersey. “We had to be creative and flow with the times. Every business has had to adapt.”
So, will the Girl Scouts continue to use drones, even after the fear of the coronavirus abides? Well, Williams is not sure, but she does feel very confident that it could become a common thing in the future! “I think this is just a really great microcosm as what that can look like as we prep for the future,” she said. If you are in Christiansburg, you can head over to the Wing website to order a drone delivery. Meanwhile, everyone else can still order their favorite Girl Scout cookies online!
Sources: My Record Journal, MSN