Luke Fewx is a nice kid. He’s a Boy Scout, record-setting
cross-country runner, budding aeronautical engineer and, by the way, holds the
current record, $38,115, for Boy Scout popcorn sales. If there is one thing
Luke is good at, it’s turning no into yes.
Luke belongs to Troop 168, chartered by American Legion post
870 of Hayward, and under the jurisdiction of the San Francisco Bay Area
Council. Last year he was number 2 in the nation with $26,417.
Every year the Boy Scouts fund their campouts, Jamboree attendance,
community projects, and more with the sale of popcorn made by Trails End. The
company offers a variety of flavors in gift tins and bags that is sold
exclusively through the Boy Scouts of America.
Luke’s success is the product of using solid sales
techniques and refining them in the field. The most important lesson he has
learned is that no isn’t always the final word. Instead of selling popcorn,
Luke understands that he is “selling the idea of the Boy Scouts.”
Additionally, Luke keeps statistics because it helps him
reach his goals. “I look at where I’ve been,” says Luke, “and I look at where I
want to be.” Good at numbers, Luke easily extrapolates from projected sales
goals and his statistics just how many people he must reach. “Six out of ten
people I stop will go over to the [sales] table; of the people that come to the
table, nine out of ten will buy.” What Luke has perfected is the ability to
counter every objection: No cash? They take cards. On a diet? Popcorn is a
low-fat snack. Don’t need it for yourself? Popcorn tins are perfect gifts.
Of the gross sales, 73% goes to the scouts, of which 38%
goes to the troop; the remainder going to the councils. That meant a net
$15,000 to Luke’s troop.
The Boy Scouts foster both self-reliance and philanthropy.
In addition to paying his way and another’s to Jamboree and earning merit
badges in robotics and wilderness skill at NASA Space Camp, Luke has directed
$500 to the Project 365 orphanage in China, and $1,500 to the James E West
Fund, and endowment that supports scouting.
Funds raised from Luke’s sales have helped increase
participation in the troop based at the California School for the Blind, and
have funded camping expenses and supplies for low income and special needs
scouts. The troop has final say over distribution of funds, since all monies
raised belong to the troop collectively, but Luke’s leadership has earned him a
significant say in how funds are used.
“You need a philanthropy goal,” says Luke’s dad, Jacob, who
is himself deeply involved in scouting. “It’s not just money, but money for
what? Kids have targeted such organizations as Homes for Humanity and Louisiana
Adirondack Flood relief.”
Troops pre-order their inventory prior to selling season,
which runs September through February. At the end of season, excess popcorn
purchased is donated. Over the last two years, around $12,000 in popcorn has
gone to the Alameda Coast Guard station, where it’s distributed free on movie
nights. Trails End also supports the military through donation programs that
fund shipments of popcorn overseas for distribution through the USO.
Luke hasn’t kept his sales secrets to himself. An estimated
$1M increase in sales nationwide has been attributed to Luke’s video
presentations and in-person sales seminars in Phoenix, Lafayette (TX), Austin,
and San Antonio. For the San Francisco Council alone, sales went up $72,000
over the prior year. In Phoenix, sales went from $2,300 to $17,000; their goal
for next season is $39,000.
Mainly, Luke focuses on the benefits of scouting. Sure, $20
for two bags of popcorn sounds high, but when Luke explains all that scouting
means, the question becomes not whether $20 popcorn is a good deal but “how
much can the Scouts count on you for your support?”
Not content to simply stand by a table in front of the
grocery store or at a BART station, Luke targets local businesses looking to
buy gifts for customers and employees. Just a few of his recurring customers
include Century 21 Marquis Realty, Conklin & Conklin, La Terra Fina, and
Scott’s Trailer Repair. Luke makes most of the sales calls himself, canvassing
the city on an electric scooter. Moreover, Luke has given his presentation on
sales to rooms full of executives and marketing professionals, including Bank
of America Wealth Management vice-presidents.
Luke started his sales career while in Cub Scouts, where he
was moderately successful. When he moved to Boy Scouts, he gave a talk
encouraging the troop to more seriously consider sales for its potential to
fund their activities. “The presentation,” says Jacob, “went over like a lead
balloon. But afterward, when parents had just heard how popcorn sales could
lift some of the burden off their own budgets, they were saying, “Sign us up!”
At the sales table, some kids have a hard time meeting the
public and will just “hide behind the popcorn,” says Luke. But he will help by
making part of the presentation himself, and then bringing in the reluctant
scout to finish and close the sale. What Luke seems to be good at is
remembering how good it feels to get to “yes,” and he instills that enthusiasm
in other scouts, so that the few inevitable “no’s” don’t hold as much sting.
Luke’s dad is of course very proud of him, but he is also
careful to remind Luke that though his contribution to his troop of big numbers
is easy to see, the contributions of other scouts may be less visible but of no
less value. “Another kid,” says Jacob, “may still contribute knowledge and
experience that others might benefit from their whole lives.”
What’s ahead for Luke? He’s already gotten job offers from
the businesses that buy from him, even though he’s just thirteen; but
certainly, whatever he wants to do, he has choices. Luke has a method of
success that can take him any direction he wants,” says Jacob. “I just show him
what his options are. It’s about recognizing an opportunity when it shows up.
He’s learned to ask questions, to make social connections and take an interest
in what people are doing.”
What’s it like to be labeled an “overachiever”? “Some kids
don’t want to be an overachiever in front of other people,” says Luke, “but it’s
opened a lot of opportunities for me.”
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