How Ben and Jerry went to a $ 1 billion brand with the heart.
Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield were not your typical commercial magnates. One was a potter in difficulty. The other, a medical school that hopes who could not take a break. But with a shared correspondence course of $ 5 and a rooted dream more in pleasure and friendship than finance, the duo has built one of the most appreciated and recognizable ice cream brands of the planet –Ben & Jerry’s. Almost 50 years after their first scoop, their company is not only as an empire of dessert, but as a symbol of activism, integrity and to respect your values, even in a corporate world.
A good start of the gym class at the service station
The story of Ben and Jerry started in a seventh year gym class in Merrick, New York. The two have become rapid friends, a link that only deepened in their twenties when they reconnected, both in search of a goal. Ben Cohen was doing pottery that was not sold. Jerry Greenfield postulated again and again at the medical school without luck.
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In 1977, they decided to get started together. After weighing options like the bagels and the fondue, they settled on the ice cream – it was delicious, affordable to produce and, above all, fun. To prepare, they divided a Penn State correspondence course of $ 5 on the manufacture of ice cream. It was initially developed in 1892 and, remarkably, still exists today.
Opposite $ 12,000, especially $ 4,000 each, a bank loan and a help from Ben’s father – they opened their first scoop shop in 1978 in an old reinforced service station in Burlington, Vermont. It was a humble beginning, but the one filled with heart, creativity and homemade charm.
A revolution focused on texture
Ben Cohen has an anosmia – a condition that limits his smell and his taste. So, to improve the experience of ice cream for itself, it turned to texture. This need led to thick now famous mixtures which have become the brand brand of the brand.
From cookie dough to whirlwind from Fudge Gooey to nuts wrapped in walnuts, these exaggerated combinations were not a marketing gadget – they were a personal innovation. This same feeling of authenticity continued to define the company and to resonate deeply with its fans.
In the mid -1980s, Ben & Jerry’s spread on the shelves of the American grocery store. In 1984, the company became public. Three years later, it was estimated at $ 30 million, or about $ 68 million in today’s money. The brand’s social message, the folk brand and the refusal to be intimidated by larger companies have helped it build an almost cult audience.
Sell the dream – without losing their values
In 2000, Ben & Jerry’s was acquired by Global Food Giant Unilever for $ 326 million, or $ 600 million in today’s dollars. Although the sale was bit bitter, it was also necessary. As a listed company, Ben & Jerry’s had to entertain the acquisition offers.
But Ben and Jerry did not let go without fighting. They negotiated a unique agreement: the brand would retain an independent council responsible for preserving the social mission of the company. It was an unprecedented arrangement which assured that their values would not be watered down in the corporate machine.
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Thanks to the distribution power of Unilever, Ben & Jerry’s has become global. Today, the brand is sold in 43 countries and generates around $ 1 billion in annual income. But the relationship had its growing pain.
In 2021, tensions broke out when Ben & Jerry announced that it would no longer sell its products in territories occupied by Israeli, citing human rights concerns. This decision aroused generalized reactions and prosecution. Unilever replied by selling Israeli activities without the consent of the board of directors, which prompted Ben & Jerry’s to continue his own parent company.
“If you love us, let us leave”
Quick advance until 2024, and Unilever announced its intention to turn all its ice cream division – including Ben & Jerry – in a separate commercial entity. The group, which includes other brands like Magnum, Breyers and Klondike, reports about $ 9 billion a year. However, slow growth and political complexity surrounding Ben & Jerry have made the ice cream division increasingly difficult for Unilever to manage.
It was then that Ben Cohen saw an opening. In 2025, he launched an ambitious plan to buy the brand. Rallying of investors sharing the same ideas, he hopes to send Ben & Jerry back to independent property and ensure that his activist mission remains without compromise. “If you love us, let us go,” he said, in a sincere call to business freedom.
So far, Unite Has shown no intention to sell the individual of Ben & Jerry. But the independent board of directors of the brand still holds the legal authority on social mission decisions, whatever the property – thanks to the vision that Ben and Jerry cook in the original acquisition terms.
A brand with heart and activism in its heart
What distinguishes Ben & Jerry’s is not only his imaginative flavors – is his intrepid commitment to social justice. The brand has spoken on climate change, Black Lives Matter, LGBTQ +rights, the reform of criminal justice, etc. His daring statements, although occasional, made him a pioneer in corporate activism.
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Ben and Jerry themselves are always deeply involved in the brand’s moral compass. Although they were in the 1970s, they regularly attended franchise events, speak during employee rallies and defend the same causes they have believed since the first day.
In 2024, Ben Cohen was arrested during a demonstration in the Senate against American aid in Israel – showing that his activism is not performative, but deeply personal.
The power of a brand focused on the objective
Ben & Jerry’s remains one of the rare world brands ready to put the principle before profit. Although this has sometimes contradicted them with their corporate supervisors, this also cemented their inheritance as a pioneers of the values based on values. Their trip from a Vermont service station to the world scene inspired countless entrepreneurs to think beyond net profit.
And despite all the drama of the company, one thing has never changed: their conviction that business can – and should – be a force for good.
Conclusion
Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield have transformed a modest investment and a shared dream into a one billion dollars company without ever compromising. Their story does not only concern ice cream – it is friendship, courage and respecting your values, regardless of the size of the scene. While they continue to defend the progressive causes and put pressure for the independence of the brand, Ben and Jerry remain beloved icons which have proven that business and integrity can, in fact, go hand in hand. Their heritage is already written in pieces and whirlwind, but the best can still be to come.