How's popcorn going?

[Twocubdad]

So how are popcorn sales going for everyone? Anyone seeing any interesting trends? What do you think of this year's product mix/prices?

 

We are about even with last year, a bit over $20,000 in total sales. Our take orders were due yesterday, so I don't have a final figure from our Popcorn Colonel. We go very heavy on show and sell, so take orders make up a fairly small percentage of our total.

 

Generally, I thing the trend toward bigger, more expensive tins isn't a good one. We sell hundreds and hundreds of the $7 tins and very few of the $40 and $50 tins. We pre-ordered enough of the big tins so that we could have one at each show and sell location, but are having trouble selling even those. They need more products in the $10 range. I think many of the folks who buy the $7 tins do it just to do something to help the scouts. If we had a $10 item my hunch is that many of those $7 sales would easily pay an even $10.

 

The $20 kettle corn has turn out to be a real dog for us. The local VFD will be getting a pile of that this year. (We convert all the extra donations we receive into sales and donate the popcorn to various organizations.)

 

How's it going for the rest of you?

[txscoutdad]

This year has been slow compared to last for my son. He sold $1,200 last year and this year only about $800. The troop sold over $40,000 last year and tonight was the night to turn in orders so I don't know how we are looking for this year. We don't do show and sell as a troop altough I guess some boys might by themselves.

 

I also agree that more products in the $10 range would help.

 

 

[Eamonn]

Hey Guys - I need you in our District!!

I was feeling warm and fuzzy that we had brought our District total up from $76,000 to over $95,000. We managed to do that with 32 fewer Cub Scouts.

We were the only District to reach the goal last year and it looks like we will be again. The units that took part in the Blitz / Show and Deliver really did well. Of course the lower priced packs sold better than the higher priced packs.

Sad to say the sale is just about over, pick up was early today and already the fights have started. The SE saying that the Council will not make goal and the Council Popcorn Chair. Saying that the goal is/was not realistic. I think it will have to be choice of weapons at dawn.

Eamonn.

[fotoscout]

Our popcorn is not great this year. We will be down by a total of about $800, and thats with a increase of about $1000 in Show and Sell. This years total will be $5600.

 

Council changed the program this year, by forcing us to use the prize system offered by Trails End, and by mailing the order forms to each home around mid July. Most of the forms got thrown into the garbage, because it looked like junk mail and no one was looking for it. By time we had our program up an running this year, we had already lost 1 month of Take Order, and realized that almost no one had order forms. We only had one product under $10.00! The small tin of Carmel Popcorn, it sold well but the other stuff was just too expensive for most people.

 

We did more show and sell, but that became troublesome because no one could tell us how to handle the prizes with respect to the Show and Sell. This got to be quite ugly at one point.

 

Additionally, when Council forced us into the prize system they took 5% of our profit, without every asking it we wanted to go in that direction, and told us that we had to live with it. Ultimately, the online order system would have allowed us to opt out of the prize system and take the money. Thereby allowing us to do our own prize thing, which had worked well for us over the years.

 

All in all Im not happy with what they did, and Im convinced that our sales are down because of the confusion early on.

 

[cajuncody]

This year our popcorn sales stink! Why you ask? Well our current CM decided it was too much of a hassel so we aren't doing it. No vote, he decided. I just found this out yesterday while I was at the scout shop. Orders are due on the 12th. I found out from another volunteer, not my CM. No popcorn, no candy bars, and we are a broke pack already. We are doing the (words deleted for mature content before post) scratch off cards only it seems and I haven't sold the first dot. I have been laughed at and had door shut in my face. The coupons are lousy. What are we to do.

Disheartened in TN

Kristi

[Eamonn]

Kristi

From reading your posting it seems that the pack has some really big problems.

We as a District have been planning, pushing, training, promoting the popcorn sale since late July.

I can see a unit deciding not to participate. But I don't think a leader in the District could say that they didn't know.

If I were in your shoes I would ask the CC why the pack decided not to participate. This is a committee decision and not up to the Cubmaster. It may be too late for this year but it should be on the annual plan for next year.

Eamonn.

 

[flowerchild]

This is my third and last year as troop popcorn chairman. The first 2 years went OK, no really complaints. This year is a different story. Out of 29 boys, only 12 sold popcorn. They had been told the date that the order forms were due and a schedule was sent home. Several reminders were announced at each meeting and activity. The night came to collect orders and 2 boys didn't have their forms. One of them approached me and asked if he could bring it to my house in the morning. The other boy said nothing.

 

After receiving the one form, I placed the troops order with the district popcorn chairman. TWO days later I get a very nasty phone call from mother of the boy who said nothing. She accused me of telling her boy he couldn't turn in his form. She also accused me of being mean to both her sons and that's why the don't come to the meetings. I explained that he never talked to me about his form and I wasn't aware that he had even sold any popcorn, I also told her I had never said anything mean, rude or whatever to her sons.

 

I don't mean to ramble on here. Guess I needed to get it off my chest. I told my DE that if she spoke to me that way again, I quit.

 

BTW, the DE took her order.

[Sparkie]

Our popcorn sale went as expected From a council viewpoint (i'm the popcorn chair for the coun.) we reached our goal even though we shortened the sale by 2 weeks (formerly ran 7 weeks), and raised our $12 tins to $15. It's very unusual to have an item under $10. We (coun.) asked our supplier, Pecetonica to create a $10 site sale only carmel bucket that's non-returnable (last year consignment returns were 30% ). The item seemed to do very well.

 

A big problem we have is units opening up microwave popcorn and selling it for $1 per packet. Not only are they NOT marked for individual sale, but it hurts the sale of the other items like the 15 packs. And i firmly believe the 6 pack is now extinct (at least in my area) due to this practice.

 

Fotoscout, we offered units (mainly troops) an opt out for prizes. In lieu of prizes, they could receive 5% of the gross sales.

 

Sparkie

 

P.S. We tried the prize brochure mailing to homes to try to get non-selling units to sell. Needless to say, the same thing that happened by you happened to us, more tossed than looked at .

[johndaigler]

My Unit's story is similar,(more Cubs selling less popcorn) so I won't boar you with details - just a few questions.

 

Is there a way - other than going through Council - to determine the entire range of TE products? On the website, you have to go by Council to see what products are available to your Unit.

 

Also, I pitched TE with the idea that they need to have a smaller "walk and eat" pack for under $5. We're trying to sell at local festivals, etc. and folks would "gobble em up" (pun intended!) while they walk around and look at the art, or fall activities, or whatever. I think this would help fight Sparkie's concerns, too! Jump on the bandwagon and email Trail's End!!

 

jd

[Twocubdad]

We sell a ton of the 6-pack boxes at $7 each. Of course that is a dollar more than they would cost if you bought the entire 30-pack variety box. It's interesting to me that we quickly sell the three butter varieties (light, regular and ultra), but the two kettle corn flavors lag. They usually sell though, to people who simply want to buy something inexpensive as a "donation" without really wanting the product.

 

As an update, we did much better in take orders than expected so our pack total is over $26,000. That an increase of about 20% over last year.

[va-scouter]

It was announced last night that the pack sold about $11,000 in popcorn, with about $3,600 of the proceeds coming to our pack. A single Webelos sold $1,800 worth.

 

That money can do a lot of good for the boys, just have to get it cut loose. Saw the statement from the checking account during popcorn pick-up, there was a bit of a .... carry over from previous years, $2,600. Don't want to hear "we can't afford to do that" this year. Not at all.

 

We currently have 52 registered cubs due to a big influx at round-up. Actual active, not dropped out, is lower than that. 15 Tigers, 10 Wolves, 3 Bears, 7 Webelos I, and 3 Webelos II. Some actually turned in their popcorn money last night and announced they wouldn't be back.