Madison, Wis. – The 32nd annual American Girl Benefit Sale takes place July 20 & 21, 2019, in Middleton, Wisconsin. The sale offers genuine American Girl dolls and merchandise at 30–80% off retail prices. Saturday tickets are sold out; shoppers are encouraged to attend on Sunday, 9 a.m. to noon, when they can shop for free.
Proceeds from the sale benefit Madison Children’s Museum and American Girl’s Fund for Children, which supports dozens of organizations working on behalf of children in the Dane County area. The sale features tens of thousands of American Girl dolls and related merchandise, generously donated by American Girl and Mattel. Around one hundred volunteers work nearly year-round to ready the merchandise for sale.
Tickets are required to attend the sale on Saturday; all tickets for Saturday are sold out. Some shoppers choose to donate unneeded tickets at the information tent, located at the entrance to the sale. So a limited number of Saturday tickets may be available for purchase on-site on Saturday. The Saturday Sale is open 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Tickets for the Sunday Markdown Sale will be distributed free, on-site at the sale starting at 7 a.m. on Sunday, July 21, for shopping times from 9 a.m. to noon (last entry is at noon). Paid, early-entry Sunday tickets, for admission between 7 and 8:45 a.m., sold out during the presale this spring.
The sale is held at the benefit sale warehouse in Middleton at 8830 N. Greenview Drive.
Ticket prices:
Saturday, all day: $8 per person (sold out, limited tickets may become available at info tent)
Sunday, after 9 a.m.: free entry
All attendees must have a ticket and must be at least three years of age to be admitted in the sale warehouse.
The sale grounds—free to visit—offer a festival atmosphere, with thousands of American Girl fans; a vendor fair, offering unique and handcrafted accessories and gifts; and raffles and silent auctions, featuring rare and discontinued American Girl items.
The American Girl Benefit Sale is a unique fundraiser with deep roots in the Madison community and a long record of success. Last year’s sale raised over $1 million and attracted over 5,000 shoppers from all over the country—and some from abroad. This year, ticket purchasers include attendees from Australia, Canada, Spain, and the United Kingdom.
Over the past 31 years, Madison Children’s Museum has restored and resold overstock and returned merchandise donated by American Girl. The sale serves as the children’s museum’s largest fundraiser and has raised a cumulative total of approximately $25 million for Madison Children’s Museum and, via American Girl’s Fund for Children, scores of other organizations working on behalf of children and families in Dane County. A dedicated group of about 100 museum volunteers work year-round to prepare for the event, with many more volunteers joining on-site during the sale. Thousands of volunteer hours are logged annually.
