No Ordinary S’more

Use minor upgrades to turn a mundane visit into a gourmet experience

By Jessica Lippe
Photos: Courtesy Of Jessica Lippe

I never thought I would spend upwards of $10 on a single s’more.

Like many camp professionals, I’m not in this industry for the money, which is a good thing because I’ve never earned that much! Instead, I try to make the most of my small paychecks by finding quality experiences, and I tend to avoid luxury items. You probably practice some of the same frugal habits I do, whether in your personal life or in managing camp funds. But something was different the night I dropped all that money on the classic camp dessert.

Parting With $10

It wasn’t even at a camp. In fact, I had just left a job at a camp in Kansas City and was headed to my new job at a camp in Southern California. During this move-turned-road-trip, I decided to spend one night in Las Vegas. This was a city I had only been to once before when I was 3 years old. It was definitely different and more memorable as an adult, especially because of how COVID-19 affected Vegas’ tourist and gambling industry. Still, I was swept away by the bright lights, the street-side shows, and the ornately decorated casinos that made me feel like I was traveling the world despite the global lockdown. I was particularly drawn to a multi-story world dedicated to a popular chocolate brand.

I posed for a selfie with the chocolate Statue of Liberty and then managed to resist the temptation of the thousands of chocolate-themed treats beckoning inside the delicious-smelling store. Adjacent to one of the entrances stood a kiosk that sold only gourmet s’mores. I’m a camp professional; how can I say no to a s’more? I looked over the options for chocolates: classic chocolate bars to peanut butter cups. I selected a chocolate mint KitKat and then watched the sales associate as she loaded that treat and a giant, square marshmallow onto custom-made graham cookies, which she fed through a special s’more-cooking machine. As the marshmallow melted into the chocolate, she told me my grand total: $10.84.

While biting into the sugary mess, I determined it was worth every penny. This was no ordinary s’more. A delight with a few minor upgrades from something I eat almost every time I light a campfire was elevated into a gourmet experience. It also got me thinking about how camps can adapt to the world’s changing circumstances, not by cutting corners, as what usually happens, but by adding some class.

The Quest For Additional Income

Before this trip to Las Vegas, I was working at a camp in Kansas City. I never had the opportunity to see how the camp operated outside of the pandemic, and there were very few guest groups renting the camp during my time there. Budget cuts definitely had to be made, but administrators also looked for ways to increase income by providing services of a more worthy value. They offered some of their best lodging options on Airbnb to individuals who couldn’t book a typical guest group. That allowed for friends, families, and solo travelers to experience the benefits of camp during their own personal getaway. Plus, most of the travelers hadn’t even heard of the camp before, so it doubled as marketing exposure.

The camp also started an annual fall festival, open every weekend through Halloween. Since it was outdoors and events were socially distanced, many people felt safe starting a new family tradition when many of their previous autumn activities had been canceled. Although visitors could buy pumpkins and food from the grill, the general-admission fee covered most activities, including hatchet throwing, archery, slingshots, and a maze. Of course, because this was the first time at camp for many visitors, we offered information about signing up for summer camp!

Don’t Cut Corners

Before leaving Kansas City, I attended Christian Camp and Conference Association’s virtual conference. I was impressed by some of the ideas that camp professionals enacted in 2020. As this conference included thousands from many different states, some participants shared the usual business experiences, while others told stories of how creative they had become over the previous months. In one of the virtual seminars, a food-service director explained how his camp created meal and dessert kits to sell to camper families in order to create the camp dining experience at home. (Do you think your camp has any signature dishes or even food that people would willingly eat outside of camp? That’s one area that you can focus on elevating!)

I had the opportunity to visit several camps during the pandemic. As you can imagine, many had to temporarily shut down or make drastic cuts to their programming. One director in Colorado allowed me to visit her for the day, but I was the only one, even in the prime summer season. Many people reading this know they lost camp opportunities because the state or their board of directors mandated that they close. There isn’t much we can do about that. But we can use the downtime to think creatively, so I’d like to challenge you to use that creative-thinking time to brainstorm ways to elevate your camp, instead of just cutting corners.

Challenge Yourself

For several weeks after I arrived in California, the camp I’m now working at was closed due to statewide mandates. I spent over a month not knowing how the camp operated when campers were on the grounds, so I used that time to experience things I’d never seen at any other camp. I somehow ended up becoming the camp’s coffee-shop manager, which is a story in itself since I don’t even drink coffee. I’ve only worked at one other camp before where espresso was sold, so that in itself is an elevated amenity. But this camp trained several of us at an upscale café, where I also now buy premium roasted beans. Learning how to select quality coffee beans and how to pull the perfect espresso shot isn’t exactly necessary for a camp coffee shop; we could just serve cheap watered-down coffee. But learning these little skills not only helped me navigate the unknown world of coffee, but also created a quality experience for campers, which makes them want to return to the coffee shop again and again.

Because of these experiences over the past year, I’m challenging myself to look for ways to elevate the camp experience, no matter the department I’m working in. I’m hoping other camp professionals adopt this mindset as well.

But please, don’t charge your campers 10 bucks per s’more!

Jessica Lippe is the author of The Ultimate Survival Guide to Working at Camp, available on Amazon and in select bookstores. Visit her website at JessicaLippe.com.