Popcorn (and Peanuts!)

This Page is a Living Document

• Please read all the way to the bottom; there are important policies and dates sprinkled throughout.
• There are a handful of meaningful changes from last year.
• Updates will be posted regularly during popcorn season.
• Please come back to this page often (and refresh your browser when you do).
• If you have questions or concerns, please ask.

Importance of Popcorn

The annual Popcorn sale is essential to the financial well-being of our Troop. Popcorn funds about half of our annual operating costs.

Popcorn is what buys

• cool things like Scout Rank and Merit Badge patches,
• fun things like new tents and camp stoves and
• important things like new tires and brakes for Claire, the scout bus that we own and maintain.

The popcorn sale has an immediate impact — for every $1.00 of top line revenue, Troop 934 automatically keeps about 35 cents. Another 30 cents of every dollar stays here in the council, indirectly benefiting our scouts — for example, by funding upgrades and annual upkeep at Camp Raven Knob.

2025’s Popcorn Sale funded a significant portion of our new troop trailer and replacement gear!

Troop Goal + Individual Scout Quota

Just as we did in previous years, Troop 934’s Top-Line sales goal is to exceed $30,000.00.

Our per scout quota is $700.00 of sales.

$700.00 may sound like a lot, but in reality, it is 8-10 (sometimes fewer) individual transactions. History says that many scouts will easily sell 2x the number and a few scouts will sell 4x or even 6x the number.

Trail’s End and How to Sign Up:

Scouts will need to download the Trails End App to begin selling.  All sales are managed and handled 100% online (no need to keep track of paper forms!).  Scouts and their families signed up can start tracking sales, claiming storefront shifts and earning rewards.

IPhone/Ipad:

https://apps.apple.com/app/scout-fundraising/id1421483087

Android:

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.trailsend.scout

Unit Code:  J4UWD

Families enter this code in the Trail’s End app to join your unit.

Selling Methods

Troop 934 and the Troop 934 Scouts will meet the goals through a combination of

• Traditional/Door-to-Door Sales
• Online Sales
• Store Front Sales

Traditional/Door-to-Door Sales

Traditional sales are where the Scout walks the neighborhood (in his Class A uniform!) taking orders and payment in October. In mid-November there is a distribution and the Scout (with the parent’s help) delivers the popcorn to his popcorn buyers.

IMPORTANT: All orders are to be placed directly through the app!

Online Sales

Online sales can be an excellent option for scouts with friends and family in other states. Basically, the scout emails a link, the customer inputs an order and pays via credit card and the popcorn vendor ships the product direct to the buyer.

Donations

Invariably, a neighbor will want to make a small (or sometimes large) donation to the Troop but refuse to actually order/buy popcorn. This happens every year during Traditional/Wagon Sales and is actually a high percentage of our total proceeds during Show-and-Sell (Storefront) events. Please accept the donation!!!

Donations count towards the Scout’s individual quota.

• For Show-and-Sell, the donation will be mixed with the rest of the day’s proceeds and split evenly among the participating scouts.
• For Traditional/Wagon Sales, co-mingle the cash or check with the rest of the of the weekly remittance and make a note on the order form “Donation — No popcorn ordered.”

Method of Payment

Remitting Funds to Troop 934

A personal check payable to “Troop 934” is the preferred method of remitting payment to Troop 934. Cash is absolutely not a preferred method of payment for popcorn. There are four reasons

1. Cash can (and does) get lost on its way to being turned in on a Monday night (the parent is liable).
2. Cash creates a large bookkeeping headache for our volunteers.
3. Cash presents risk of loss if we don’t get it deposited right away (the volunteer is liable).
4. Banks charge us a fee when we deposit a significant level of cash.

Therefore, we ask that parents deposit any cash collected during Door-to-Door into their personal account and then write a single check each week to “Troop 934”.

Finally, each and every time a Sount or Parent turns in popcorn money s/her should be sure to GET A PAPER RECEIPT. At least twice every year a mysterious $100 bill appears at the end of a meeting and we have NO IDEA where to apply it — if the receipt book is gone WAIT UNTIL NEXT WEEK.

Collecting Funds from Popcorn Buyers

On the other hand, Scouts are welcome to accept cash during Door-to-Door sales. In fact, cash is actually preferable here because it reduces the risk of returned check fees.

Thank you!