TRENTON (March 24, 2025) – When there’s a winning jackpot in a New Jersey Lottery game, much of the attention goes to the player. Rightly so. However, the other big winner in the New Jersey Lottery is the retailer—and not just when a jackpot is won.

The New Jersey lottery works with nearly 6,800 retailers, who earned a total of $214 million in commissions in fiscal year 2024. That works out to an average of more than $30,000 a year per retailer. When a big jackpot is hit, the retailer can get a bonus of as much as $10,000.

The Lottery’s contribution to retailers goes beyond financial support. Many retailers are the lifeblood of their neighborhoods and communities. Consider Clark Cardsmart, nestled between Ritter Place and Campbell Place on Westfield Avenue in Clark, a Union County township of 15,000 named after Continental Congress delegate Abraham Clark, who was a signer of the Declaration of Independence.

The shop, a stone’s throw from the Garden State Parkway, has been embedded in Clark for nearly 30 years, selling treats, cards, gifts, home furnishings and, yes, lottery tickets.

It was one ticket that put the spotlight on Cardsmart. On Thursday, March 20, a Lottery player drew the winning numbers of 07, 10, 24, 31, 43 and 44 to win the $5.5 million Pick-6 jackpot. Cardsmart’s owners received a $10,000 bonus.

While winning players can choose to remain anonymous, retailers like to shout out the good news far and wide. And news of the jackpot win spread quite quickly.

“A lot of players were coming in after they heard,” said Steve Dileonardo, who owns the store with business partner Rich Rubenstein.

“This place is a fixture of the neighborhood,” Rubenstein said Monday as hopeful players streamed into the store. “This is so good for the community.”

Last week’s Pick-6 win is New Jersey’s second highest prize of 2025. The largest was the previous Pick-6 jackpot of $32 million that was won January 20 in the Ocean County township of Jackson. The highest Pick-6 jackpot of all time was $48.9 million, won in Passaic County’s Clifton in 2001.

Other notable recent Pick-6 wins:

• March 28, 2024: $30 million split equally by two players in Morris and Monmouth counties.
• May 13, 2024: $4.5 million in Morris County.
• June 13, 2024: $3 million in Burlington County.