Due to the high cost of living in San Francisco, California, the price of Girl Scout cookies will increase.
The San Francisco Business Times reported that the Northern California Chapter of Girl Scouts will experience a 25 percent increase in price per box. Running from Feb. 9 through March 16, the group will raise the price by $1, making it $5 for a box instead of the average $4.
The Northern California Chapter is the only to hike the price. Others such as Santa Cruz and other nearby regions will continue selling their cookies at $4 a box.
The price jack may lead to some stiff competition for the Northern California chapter this cookie season, the Business Times reported.
The price jump will be the first time in five years that the Girl Scouts has raised the cost of its cookies. In 2009, the organization raised the box prices from $3.50 to $4.
According to Marina Park, the chapter's executive director, the local troops are not getting greedier, but business has gone up, including bakers' fees and facility expenses.
"Rather than scaling back the opportunities we offer girls, we raised the price of cookies," Park explained, according to the San Francisco Business Times. "We're betting that our customers will see the value in an extra dollar per box that they're paying,"
Park added that the money will be "invested in technology and new resources" to keep the "organization relevant." It will also help grow the organization's STEM program and help girls in underserved communities.
"That extra dollar is making a huge difference," Park said. "They should see it as an investment in the community to support girls."
The Chapter of Girl Scouts serves 50,000 girls and 31,000 adults in 19 counties and is expected to increase in numbers. The program is set to helping girls learn "goal-setting skills, decision making, money management, business ethics and teamwork."
"I hope supporters will keep making the investment that has allowed us to grow and get more girls to camp," Park said.
In 2013, about 31,000 Girl Scouts of Northern California sold more than 4.4 million boxes of cookies and in 2012, 4.3 million boxes were sold.
Would you pay $5 for a box of Girl Scout cookies?