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Ice Cream Social: The Struggle for the Soul of Ben & Jerry's
The Riveting True Story of One Of the World’s Most Iconic Mission-Driven Companies
Ben & Jerry’s has always been committed to an insanely ambitious three-part making the world’s best ice cream, supporting progressive causes, and sharing the company’s success with all employees, suppliers, distributors, customers, cows, everybody. But it hasn’t been easy.
This is the first book to tell the full, inside story of the inspiring rise, tragic mistakes, devastating fall, determined recovery, and ongoing renewal of one of the most iconic mission-driven companies in the world. No previous book has focused so intently on the challenges presented by staying true to that mission. No other book has explained how the company came to be sold to corporate giant Unilever or how that relationship evolved to allow Ben & Jerry’s to pursue its mission on a much larger stage.
Journalist Brad Edmondson tells the story with an eye for details, dramatic moments, and memorable characters. He interviewed dozens of key figures, particularly Jeff Furman, who helped Ben and Jerry write their first business plan in 1978 and became chairman of the board in 2010. It’s a funny, sad, surprising, and ultimately hopeful story.
Ben & Jerry’s has always been committed to an insanely ambitious three-part making the world’s best ice cream, supporting progressive causes, and sharing the company’s success with all employees, suppliers, distributors, customers, cows, everybody. But it hasn’t been easy.
This is the first book to tell the full, inside story of the inspiring rise, tragic mistakes, devastating fall, determined recovery, and ongoing renewal of one of the most iconic mission-driven companies in the world. No previous book has focused so intently on the challenges presented by staying true to that mission. No other book has explained how the company came to be sold to corporate giant Unilever or how that relationship evolved to allow Ben & Jerry’s to pursue its mission on a much larger stage.
Journalist Brad Edmondson tells the story with an eye for details, dramatic moments, and memorable characters. He interviewed dozens of key figures, particularly Jeff Furman, who helped Ben and Jerry write their first business plan in 1978 and became chairman of the board in 2010. It’s a funny, sad, surprising, and ultimately hopeful story.
304 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2014
33 people are currently reading
617 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
January 2, 2014
I'm biased because I wrote it. I spent two solid years on the project because it's such an important an interesting story. If you believe that business people should find ways to combine social activism and selling, this book is for you.
April 6, 2017
One of my most vivid memories of the dozens of Social Venture Network (SVN) conferences I’ve attended over the years was seeing Ben Cohen walking into the dining hall in 2000, in tears over the sale of Ben & Jerry’s to Unilever. I went over to hug him — that’s the sort of thing you do at SVN conferences — and as he sobbed I said something stupid like “Look at it this way, Ben. You walked away with a s**tload of money.” ($41 million, actually.) Ben was not consoled.
As I recall, I first saw Ben Cohen sitting in a circle at an SVN conference in 1991. (Anita Roddick was sitting next to me, literally bouncing up and down, impatient to speak.) Not to put too fine an edge on it, I was star-struck. We didn’t speak then, but within short order I found opportunities to ask Ben about some of the innovations he’d introduced to Ben & Jerry’s to advance social justice. I learned a great deal from him, with profound results for my company when I later put those lessons into action.
In the ensuing years — SVN’s four-day conferences were held twice annually — I got to know Ben as a person rather than a star. He invited me to join him on the board of his organization, One Percent for Peace, and I became engaged in the negotiations to merge that small venture into Business for Social Responsibility, of which we’d both been co-founders in 1992 (along with a cast of dozens). At one point, believe it or not, this marketing genius even hired me to do some marketing work for his company’s huge nationwide campaign in support of the Children’s Defense Fund. Much later, I felt comfortable enough with Ben that I was able to talk him into putting his name as my coauthor on a book I was writing for SVN, published in 2006 as Values-Driven Business: How to Change the World, Make Money, and Have Fun.
Despite this unusual degree of access to Ben, and strong relationships with a number of mutual friends, I wasn’t aware of what had really happened in the tumultuous days leading up to the sale of the company, much less in the thirteen years that followed. None of the several books I’d read about Ben & Jerry’s had helped at all. Now I believe I know . . . well, a lot, though certainly not everything, thanks to Brad Edmondson’s excellent new book, Ice Cream Social. Edmondson’s subtitle, The Struggle for the Soul of Ben & Jerry’s, is right on target, melodramatic though it may seem at first glance.
Much of the author’s information and contacts came from Jeff Furman, who, little known outside, was effectively Ben and Jerry’s third partner in founding the company. In fact, factoring in both Ben’s and Jerry’s long absences – Jerry through several years in the 1980s, and both of them through most of the 2000s — Jeff is in all likelihood the only person (at least at a senior level) who has stayed with Ben & Jerry’s throughout its history. A board member for many years now, he has served as chair since 2010. Jeff is fiercely dedicated to social and economic justice — and a nice guy to boot.
Ice Cream Social details Ben, Jeff, and Jerry’s halting journey through the 1980s toward shaping the three-part mission that the company has been known for since 1988: making the best ice cream in the world; supporting causes that promote economic, social, and environmental change; and taking into account all the company’s stakeholders when making business decisions. Ben publicly called this the “double bottom line.” Within the company, and in Ice Cream Social, the concept is termed “shared prosperity.”
For a quarter-century, Ben & Jerry’s has been an icon of socially responsible business — a movement that the company was a leading factor in creating — but through much of the decade following its sale in 2000 the company fell far short of its exemplary performance in the last century. Clueless executives placed in charge by Unilever progressively whittled away at all three pillars of the mission, deliberately lowering product quality, getting in the way of the social mission, and shoveling economic benefits toward the outsiders brought in as executives. Ice Cream Social is most compelling when telling the story of how Jeff Furman and his allies on the company’s board started fighting back against Unilever in 2007.
Aggressively holding the parent company to the precise terms of the extraordinary sales agreement Ben and his colleagues had negotiated, and holding the threat of a major lawsuit over their heads, the Ben & Jerry’s board ultimately succeeded in winning over Unilever’s top management — and, in the process, embedding some aspects of its uniquely progressive mission into the priorities of a $68 billion global conglomerate, the world’s third largest food company (after Nestle and Pepsico). Today, Ben & Jerry’s is once again a sparkling example of how a company under brilliant and visionary management can realize big profits not despite an aggressive social and environmental mission but because of it.
Though every company is unique, and the Ben & Jerry’s story is far more unusual than most, there are lessons to be learned from the company’s experience.
For starters, the differences in perspective between social entrepreneurs like Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield on the one hand and top executives at most large public corporations are profound. They can’t be bridged simply by briefings, educational sessions, or show-and-tell exercises. The differences lie on the level of values. B Corporations like Ben & Jerry’s express the the personal values of their founders. Most big companies are still mired in the narrow-minded focus of Wall Street on short-term financial performance.
The hard bargaining between Ben & Jerry’s and Unilever, and the rocky relationship between the two companies after the sale, makes clear that good intentions are far from enough to preserve the unique character of a socially responsible company. The extraordinary sales agreement — a year and a half in the making — contained tough, enforceable provisions that made it a legal requirement for Unilever to operate Ben & Jerry’s in a manner that would maintain its unique and quirky character. Even so, the company was nearly driven into the ground over its first seven years as a subsidiary of Unilever, and it took extraordinary courage and disciplined action by Jeff Furman and others on the Ben & Jerry’s board to confront the reality and hold Unilever’s feet to the fire: genuine corporate responsibility doesn’t come easily in a classical corporate environment.
As I recall, I first saw Ben Cohen sitting in a circle at an SVN conference in 1991. (Anita Roddick was sitting next to me, literally bouncing up and down, impatient to speak.) Not to put too fine an edge on it, I was star-struck. We didn’t speak then, but within short order I found opportunities to ask Ben about some of the innovations he’d introduced to Ben & Jerry’s to advance social justice. I learned a great deal from him, with profound results for my company when I later put those lessons into action.
In the ensuing years — SVN’s four-day conferences were held twice annually — I got to know Ben as a person rather than a star. He invited me to join him on the board of his organization, One Percent for Peace, and I became engaged in the negotiations to merge that small venture into Business for Social Responsibility, of which we’d both been co-founders in 1992 (along with a cast of dozens). At one point, believe it or not, this marketing genius even hired me to do some marketing work for his company’s huge nationwide campaign in support of the Children’s Defense Fund. Much later, I felt comfortable enough with Ben that I was able to talk him into putting his name as my coauthor on a book I was writing for SVN, published in 2006 as Values-Driven Business: How to Change the World, Make Money, and Have Fun.
Despite this unusual degree of access to Ben, and strong relationships with a number of mutual friends, I wasn’t aware of what had really happened in the tumultuous days leading up to the sale of the company, much less in the thirteen years that followed. None of the several books I’d read about Ben & Jerry’s had helped at all. Now I believe I know . . . well, a lot, though certainly not everything, thanks to Brad Edmondson’s excellent new book, Ice Cream Social. Edmondson’s subtitle, The Struggle for the Soul of Ben & Jerry’s, is right on target, melodramatic though it may seem at first glance.
Much of the author’s information and contacts came from Jeff Furman, who, little known outside, was effectively Ben and Jerry’s third partner in founding the company. In fact, factoring in both Ben’s and Jerry’s long absences – Jerry through several years in the 1980s, and both of them through most of the 2000s — Jeff is in all likelihood the only person (at least at a senior level) who has stayed with Ben & Jerry’s throughout its history. A board member for many years now, he has served as chair since 2010. Jeff is fiercely dedicated to social and economic justice — and a nice guy to boot.
Ice Cream Social details Ben, Jeff, and Jerry’s halting journey through the 1980s toward shaping the three-part mission that the company has been known for since 1988: making the best ice cream in the world; supporting causes that promote economic, social, and environmental change; and taking into account all the company’s stakeholders when making business decisions. Ben publicly called this the “double bottom line.” Within the company, and in Ice Cream Social, the concept is termed “shared prosperity.”
For a quarter-century, Ben & Jerry’s has been an icon of socially responsible business — a movement that the company was a leading factor in creating — but through much of the decade following its sale in 2000 the company fell far short of its exemplary performance in the last century. Clueless executives placed in charge by Unilever progressively whittled away at all three pillars of the mission, deliberately lowering product quality, getting in the way of the social mission, and shoveling economic benefits toward the outsiders brought in as executives. Ice Cream Social is most compelling when telling the story of how Jeff Furman and his allies on the company’s board started fighting back against Unilever in 2007.
Aggressively holding the parent company to the precise terms of the extraordinary sales agreement Ben and his colleagues had negotiated, and holding the threat of a major lawsuit over their heads, the Ben & Jerry’s board ultimately succeeded in winning over Unilever’s top management — and, in the process, embedding some aspects of its uniquely progressive mission into the priorities of a $68 billion global conglomerate, the world’s third largest food company (after Nestle and Pepsico). Today, Ben & Jerry’s is once again a sparkling example of how a company under brilliant and visionary management can realize big profits not despite an aggressive social and environmental mission but because of it.
Though every company is unique, and the Ben & Jerry’s story is far more unusual than most, there are lessons to be learned from the company’s experience.
For starters, the differences in perspective between social entrepreneurs like Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield on the one hand and top executives at most large public corporations are profound. They can’t be bridged simply by briefings, educational sessions, or show-and-tell exercises. The differences lie on the level of values. B Corporations like Ben & Jerry’s express the the personal values of their founders. Most big companies are still mired in the narrow-minded focus of Wall Street on short-term financial performance.
The hard bargaining between Ben & Jerry’s and Unilever, and the rocky relationship between the two companies after the sale, makes clear that good intentions are far from enough to preserve the unique character of a socially responsible company. The extraordinary sales agreement — a year and a half in the making — contained tough, enforceable provisions that made it a legal requirement for Unilever to operate Ben & Jerry’s in a manner that would maintain its unique and quirky character. Even so, the company was nearly driven into the ground over its first seven years as a subsidiary of Unilever, and it took extraordinary courage and disciplined action by Jeff Furman and others on the Ben & Jerry’s board to confront the reality and hold Unilever’s feet to the fire: genuine corporate responsibility doesn’t come easily in a classical corporate environment.
June 28, 2016
It's hard to really articulate how much I liked this book, because my writing and verbal skills are less than spectacular. I might even bypass the word "like" because reading this was about more than just enjoying it.
I help run a successful, and yet dysfunctional food cooperative in Asheville. Although I both love and very passionately believe in the cooperative business model, working for one isn't always easy. When I first started there a little over three years ago, I was, to say the least, extremely idealistic. I thought that just because a business followed this model, that everyone that worked there would be on board with all the principles that came along with it, and everyone would work equally hard to accomplish the goals of a co-op, from the General Manager, to the other managers, and the board and even all employees working in the store. I soon found out that this was not the case, and after three years of disappointment, my drive to work hard for the cooperative movement has started to wain.
That said, this book shifted my thoughts to how a good company can continually fight to do good. The story of Ben and Jerry's in a remarkable one. From a small start up "hippie" ice cream scoop shop started by two guys in Burlington, VT, to a company that was doing over $150 million dollars in sales, and all the headaches that come with a booming business in a capitalist system, Ben & Jerry's kept their promise to a three pronged bottom line. Without going into too much detail about the history of the business, the passion of not just the two original owners of the company, but those who they surrounded themselves with, is truly inspiring. Rarely do I make notes inside the margins of a book, but I had to have a hi-lighter with me at all times while reading this book. I found so much inspiration in the history of the company as well as quotes from many smart, hard working, and determined people who were and still are involved in the company. They continue to this day to push for social justice in many different ways. It really is a book that will (eventually) make you feel hopeful that not all big companies are the big bad wolf, and that no matter what people say, the food industry is a complicated place, and just because a company sells their business to a big conglomerate, does not mean that the soul has been sucked out of it.
A truly inspiring read, and I feel like, although it will take a lot of work and struggle, I know there is more good I can do for the co-op I work for, I just have to keep plugging away and look for ways to get people involved and make it the transformative force I know it can be. I will, for sure, be adding this book to my work library, and maybe sneaking copies of it into the bags of my staff in the near future.
I help run a successful, and yet dysfunctional food cooperative in Asheville. Although I both love and very passionately believe in the cooperative business model, working for one isn't always easy. When I first started there a little over three years ago, I was, to say the least, extremely idealistic. I thought that just because a business followed this model, that everyone that worked there would be on board with all the principles that came along with it, and everyone would work equally hard to accomplish the goals of a co-op, from the General Manager, to the other managers, and the board and even all employees working in the store. I soon found out that this was not the case, and after three years of disappointment, my drive to work hard for the cooperative movement has started to wain.
That said, this book shifted my thoughts to how a good company can continually fight to do good. The story of Ben and Jerry's in a remarkable one. From a small start up "hippie" ice cream scoop shop started by two guys in Burlington, VT, to a company that was doing over $150 million dollars in sales, and all the headaches that come with a booming business in a capitalist system, Ben & Jerry's kept their promise to a three pronged bottom line. Without going into too much detail about the history of the business, the passion of not just the two original owners of the company, but those who they surrounded themselves with, is truly inspiring. Rarely do I make notes inside the margins of a book, but I had to have a hi-lighter with me at all times while reading this book. I found so much inspiration in the history of the company as well as quotes from many smart, hard working, and determined people who were and still are involved in the company. They continue to this day to push for social justice in many different ways. It really is a book that will (eventually) make you feel hopeful that not all big companies are the big bad wolf, and that no matter what people say, the food industry is a complicated place, and just because a company sells their business to a big conglomerate, does not mean that the soul has been sucked out of it.
A truly inspiring read, and I feel like, although it will take a lot of work and struggle, I know there is more good I can do for the co-op I work for, I just have to keep plugging away and look for ways to get people involved and make it the transformative force I know it can be. I will, for sure, be adding this book to my work library, and maybe sneaking copies of it into the bags of my staff in the near future.
February 3, 2014
I went into this book with low expectations about the subject matter. The analyses of socially conscious businesses which I have read all point to business models that hope to turn an additional x% uptick in costs into a 2x% increase in margins - essentially another marketing angle.
However, the history provided in 'Ice Cream Social' is an excellent illustration of the social mission challenge from an insider's perspective - something I haven't read before.
In one way, the story is one giant irony. The final pages say that Ben, Jeff and friends have realized that "Ownership matters", and "chain stores are like invasive species to local economic ecosystems. We need to encourage locally made ice cream..."
Ben & Jerry succeeded locally years ago. It is now an invasive species. They could have survived indefinitely in their local market area, and would have successfully been able to keep Haagen-Dazs from becoming dominant in Vermont. And they would have had a positive social impact locally. Jerry would have been satisfied with that outcome. Ben wasn't.
Ben Cohen is a businessman, not a saint. He had focus, vision, ambition. He was a clever and bold marketer. He also has his own political vision, and pursued it with his money and time via the vehicle of his company. Others do, or have done the same, such as Henry Ford or the Koch Bros to name a couple.
The personal ethics of Ben & Jerry appear to be average. They both achieved personal financial independence in the first growth phase of the company. The only sacrifice they make for the good they want to achieve is to not be obsessed with accumulating even more money, again something I suppose most people would share.
The episode early in the book when they first tried to sell the company, reminded me of the sort of story Donald Trump likes to tell. They reneged on a valid and well understood contract in which they agreed to pay a broker a fee for finding a buyer and getting a full sale contract negotiated. They change their minds after all this work is done, and don't pay per their agreement, They then defy a court judgement by quickly moving their cash across state lines, thereby forcing the broker to forego his legitimate rights and accept a much reduced payment, in order to avoid further legal fees. Just as with Trump, this is touted as business chutzpah.
They lost their business because, primarily, they were unsatisfied being a small, locally focused business and wanted to be a BIG business, with national and international distribution; and secondarily, they made serious mistakes in executing the 'big business' plan: they completely mismanaged the building of the St Albans' plant wasting a substantial portion of the funds they raised from new - and non-Vermont based - investors; and, they completely mismanaged the transition to 'professional management', by being cavalier about the construction and evolution of the Board, and by being cheap but clever, in offering new management an excessive amount of stock options. With a bit more in the cash salary, they could have avoided the risk to control that such excessive options created. So, it is largely Ben's fault, and you can understand why he was reluctant to relive it in interviews with the author.
That being said, in the case of Ben & Jerry, in terms of their personal social mission, they did in fact have some real impact which was not simply a marketing gimmick. They took their social mission increasingly seriously, and got out-sized results given the size of their organization.
The attempt to estimate and pay a 'living wage' and to control the environmental impact of their suppliers led to real results - results that coincidentally I happen to support. However, I think this says more for Ben as a social activist, than it does for his concept of a socially conscious business.
In a competitive market economy, individual players are very very limited in their ability to set their own rules. Only a profitable company is a happy company. Even the employee morale surveys at Ben & Jerry's showed a preference for 'traditional management' as the means to good wages. Only a company earning an above average return for a substantial amount of time will be able to re-direct a portion of its profits to objectives other than monetary return on investment. Such profitability is rare.
Under the Unilever structure, with the unique Ben & Jerry's board and its explicit social mission, the tension is simple and straightforward: each year the question is asked whether the subsidiary's profits are high enough to allow a portion to be diverted to a social mission, a mission which is allowed to exist solely to the extent it contributes to global brand value, i.e. a marketing edge.
There is a self-congratulatory tendency in the socially aware business community to treat one's own political priorities as self-evidently true and good. The implication is that "we are making a sacrifice by not putting these profits straight into our pockets, therefore, our goals must necessarily be good for society".
But the reason we have representative, democratic government is to answer precisely the question what is "good for society".
So, I confess, I don't believe in socially aware businesses as a vehicle for change. Every time I see Whole Foods, Starbucks or Patagonia advertising their consciences, my inner scrooge comes out. And for many of them, I know I'm right - it IS simply brand marketing and the pursuit of a sentimental purchase at a premium margin.
I accept and applaud socially aware individuals as a vehicle for change - some of whom may happen to also control businesses which are profitable enough to allow them the kinds of choices Ben Cohen was able to make. And I welcome them putting their money where their mouths are. For example, one of the suppliers we used at a bank I worked at once was a small businessman - also Jewish with a love of humor - who actually made a real sacrifice in offering full health insurance to his employees. His competitors didn't do that, and in the local market he didn't have to. And it came directly out of his personal earnings.
As for social policy however, I would far prefer a situation where businesses are allowed and encouraged to focus on one objective only - satisfying the customer for their product or service - c'est tout. And the conditions under which they pursue that objective would be set politically via mandatory governmental structures that apply to all businesses. National health insurance, a $10 minimum wage increase and a 10% carbon tax will do a million times the good of all socially aware businesses combined.
This book was thought provoking, and gave a good feel for the individuals and their decisions. And it reminded me that not every social mission in a business is motivated by 'brand value' and the pursuit of upscale boomer purchasing power.
I look forward to more such works from Brad Edmondson.
However, the history provided in 'Ice Cream Social' is an excellent illustration of the social mission challenge from an insider's perspective - something I haven't read before.
In one way, the story is one giant irony. The final pages say that Ben, Jeff and friends have realized that "Ownership matters", and "chain stores are like invasive species to local economic ecosystems. We need to encourage locally made ice cream..."
Ben & Jerry succeeded locally years ago. It is now an invasive species. They could have survived indefinitely in their local market area, and would have successfully been able to keep Haagen-Dazs from becoming dominant in Vermont. And they would have had a positive social impact locally. Jerry would have been satisfied with that outcome. Ben wasn't.
Ben Cohen is a businessman, not a saint. He had focus, vision, ambition. He was a clever and bold marketer. He also has his own political vision, and pursued it with his money and time via the vehicle of his company. Others do, or have done the same, such as Henry Ford or the Koch Bros to name a couple.
The personal ethics of Ben & Jerry appear to be average. They both achieved personal financial independence in the first growth phase of the company. The only sacrifice they make for the good they want to achieve is to not be obsessed with accumulating even more money, again something I suppose most people would share.
The episode early in the book when they first tried to sell the company, reminded me of the sort of story Donald Trump likes to tell. They reneged on a valid and well understood contract in which they agreed to pay a broker a fee for finding a buyer and getting a full sale contract negotiated. They change their minds after all this work is done, and don't pay per their agreement, They then defy a court judgement by quickly moving their cash across state lines, thereby forcing the broker to forego his legitimate rights and accept a much reduced payment, in order to avoid further legal fees. Just as with Trump, this is touted as business chutzpah.
They lost their business because, primarily, they were unsatisfied being a small, locally focused business and wanted to be a BIG business, with national and international distribution; and secondarily, they made serious mistakes in executing the 'big business' plan: they completely mismanaged the building of the St Albans' plant wasting a substantial portion of the funds they raised from new - and non-Vermont based - investors; and, they completely mismanaged the transition to 'professional management', by being cavalier about the construction and evolution of the Board, and by being cheap but clever, in offering new management an excessive amount of stock options. With a bit more in the cash salary, they could have avoided the risk to control that such excessive options created. So, it is largely Ben's fault, and you can understand why he was reluctant to relive it in interviews with the author.
That being said, in the case of Ben & Jerry, in terms of their personal social mission, they did in fact have some real impact which was not simply a marketing gimmick. They took their social mission increasingly seriously, and got out-sized results given the size of their organization.
The attempt to estimate and pay a 'living wage' and to control the environmental impact of their suppliers led to real results - results that coincidentally I happen to support. However, I think this says more for Ben as a social activist, than it does for his concept of a socially conscious business.
In a competitive market economy, individual players are very very limited in their ability to set their own rules. Only a profitable company is a happy company. Even the employee morale surveys at Ben & Jerry's showed a preference for 'traditional management' as the means to good wages. Only a company earning an above average return for a substantial amount of time will be able to re-direct a portion of its profits to objectives other than monetary return on investment. Such profitability is rare.
Under the Unilever structure, with the unique Ben & Jerry's board and its explicit social mission, the tension is simple and straightforward: each year the question is asked whether the subsidiary's profits are high enough to allow a portion to be diverted to a social mission, a mission which is allowed to exist solely to the extent it contributes to global brand value, i.e. a marketing edge.
There is a self-congratulatory tendency in the socially aware business community to treat one's own political priorities as self-evidently true and good. The implication is that "we are making a sacrifice by not putting these profits straight into our pockets, therefore, our goals must necessarily be good for society".
But the reason we have representative, democratic government is to answer precisely the question what is "good for society".
So, I confess, I don't believe in socially aware businesses as a vehicle for change. Every time I see Whole Foods, Starbucks or Patagonia advertising their consciences, my inner scrooge comes out. And for many of them, I know I'm right - it IS simply brand marketing and the pursuit of a sentimental purchase at a premium margin.
I accept and applaud socially aware individuals as a vehicle for change - some of whom may happen to also control businesses which are profitable enough to allow them the kinds of choices Ben Cohen was able to make. And I welcome them putting their money where their mouths are. For example, one of the suppliers we used at a bank I worked at once was a small businessman - also Jewish with a love of humor - who actually made a real sacrifice in offering full health insurance to his employees. His competitors didn't do that, and in the local market he didn't have to. And it came directly out of his personal earnings.
As for social policy however, I would far prefer a situation where businesses are allowed and encouraged to focus on one objective only - satisfying the customer for their product or service - c'est tout. And the conditions under which they pursue that objective would be set politically via mandatory governmental structures that apply to all businesses. National health insurance, a $10 minimum wage increase and a 10% carbon tax will do a million times the good of all socially aware businesses combined.
This book was thought provoking, and gave a good feel for the individuals and their decisions. And it reminded me that not every social mission in a business is motivated by 'brand value' and the pursuit of upscale boomer purchasing power.
I look forward to more such works from Brad Edmondson.
February 19, 2025
I enjoyed this book though I thought the timelines bounced around a bit. I haven't been a consistent consumer of Ben & Jerry's. I had heard of the sale of the company and assumed that it was no longer a socially conscious company. When we visited the Waterbury, VT ice cream factory last October, I bought this book in the gift shop and finally got around to reading it. It's an easy read of a few hours and is packed with information from the humble beginnings and dreams up to and through the sale of B&J's to Unilever, ending in 2014, which then led to some online research and a new commitment to purchasing Ben & Jerry's. I'm on board. Now I guess my only choice is to go through the current offerings to discover my favorite flavor - yum!
June 23, 2021
I didn't know what to expect when I started this book. I hoped it would be a true Cinderella story but in the end life isn't always like that, I guess. Sometimes Goliath beats David and crams his little body into a pint of ice cream. The writing was a little sporadic and hard to follow but I think Ben and Jerry's story was exactly like that, complicated.
December 11, 2014
I thought I knew the essence of the Ben & Jerry's story: scrappy start-up wins the hearts, minds, and stomachs of an adoring fan base, and eventually gets swallowed whole by a big multinational.
But meeting Brad Edmondson at the Net Impact conference last month prompted me to read this book -- which opened my eyes to the existential struggles of a company committed to a triple bottom line before anyone knew what that meant, including its co-founders. This book has much to teach not just ice cream lovers and those of us who think about corporate social responsibility for a living, but anyone interested in the role of business in society.
I was a devotee of Ben & Jerry's for much of the '80s and '90s, and spent many happy evenings on the couch with a Knicks game and a pint (usually Cherry Garcia, though Chocolate Fudge Brownie, Heath Bar Crunch, and Mint Chocolate Cookie all had regular spots in the rotation). My college boyfriend gave tours at the original Waterbury plant during his summers back home in Vermont; while he had many great qualities, the freezer in his garage full of reject pints that staff could take home (too many chunks?!) was a particularly attractive one.
My supply was cut off when I moved to Asia, so my gastronomic interest in the company waned. But professionally I was heading squarely into Ben Cohen's and Jerry Greenfield's world of trying to align business and societal interests -- though I suspect they would be horrified to hear their company's efforts likened to BP's.
Yet I thought I had little to learn from Ben & Jerry's beyond inspiration. Co-founders and a board hellbent on social good? A product that brings joy (if, with excess, health problems)? Roots and operations in small-town New England? Where's the challenge in that?
But Ice Cream Social shows that Ben & Jerry's didn't have it easy. The company's struggles echo those of any business trying to understand and manage its social impacts: how to measure results; how to integrate a credo throughout the value chain, from suppliers to retail; which causes to champion with company resources; how to structure executive compensation that is both lucrative and equitable; how to find investors and investments whose values are aligned; and what international expansion looks like in a values-driven business.
The evolution of Ben & Jerry's social reporting, from qualitative assessments by external experts to a more rigorous, metrics-based approach, should be of particular interest given the current movement towards integrated reporting for public companies.
There were a few narrative detours early in the book that made for a bumpy start, but on the whole it was an easy, terrific read. I was riveted by the blow-by-blow account of the machinations leading up to Unilever's purchase of the company in 2000; not since Barbarians at the Gate has a corporate takeover been such a page-turner.
In the first few years after Unilever took over, Ben & Jerry's high quality standards took a nosedive as the new corporate bosses tried to cut costs. But the independent board that Ben & Jerry's fought to include in the legal agreements governing the sale eventually started flexing its muscles and continues to do so today, maintaining control over Ben & Jerry's products and social mission (including the noteworthy example of a living wage for all of its workers).
The book ends on an optimistic note, citing the independent board as well as current Unilever CEO Paul Polman's outspoken commitment to sustainability -- which sounds a lot like the values that Ben & Jerry's held from its humble beginnings.
Edmondson's book was the perfect read for Thanksgiving weekend, in the spirit of both happy eating and appreciating what's important. Everyone who wants to see business be more fair and just, but also wants a deeper appreciation for how hard that is to achieve, should read Ice Cream Social.
I am reinspired to curl up with a pint of Ben & Jerry's at the end of a long day, at least a day when I've managed to squeeze in a run. I'm less inspired to start watching the Knicks again, but we'll save that for another post.
But meeting Brad Edmondson at the Net Impact conference last month prompted me to read this book -- which opened my eyes to the existential struggles of a company committed to a triple bottom line before anyone knew what that meant, including its co-founders. This book has much to teach not just ice cream lovers and those of us who think about corporate social responsibility for a living, but anyone interested in the role of business in society.
I was a devotee of Ben & Jerry's for much of the '80s and '90s, and spent many happy evenings on the couch with a Knicks game and a pint (usually Cherry Garcia, though Chocolate Fudge Brownie, Heath Bar Crunch, and Mint Chocolate Cookie all had regular spots in the rotation). My college boyfriend gave tours at the original Waterbury plant during his summers back home in Vermont; while he had many great qualities, the freezer in his garage full of reject pints that staff could take home (too many chunks?!) was a particularly attractive one.
My supply was cut off when I moved to Asia, so my gastronomic interest in the company waned. But professionally I was heading squarely into Ben Cohen's and Jerry Greenfield's world of trying to align business and societal interests -- though I suspect they would be horrified to hear their company's efforts likened to BP's.
Yet I thought I had little to learn from Ben & Jerry's beyond inspiration. Co-founders and a board hellbent on social good? A product that brings joy (if, with excess, health problems)? Roots and operations in small-town New England? Where's the challenge in that?
But Ice Cream Social shows that Ben & Jerry's didn't have it easy. The company's struggles echo those of any business trying to understand and manage its social impacts: how to measure results; how to integrate a credo throughout the value chain, from suppliers to retail; which causes to champion with company resources; how to structure executive compensation that is both lucrative and equitable; how to find investors and investments whose values are aligned; and what international expansion looks like in a values-driven business.
The evolution of Ben & Jerry's social reporting, from qualitative assessments by external experts to a more rigorous, metrics-based approach, should be of particular interest given the current movement towards integrated reporting for public companies.
There were a few narrative detours early in the book that made for a bumpy start, but on the whole it was an easy, terrific read. I was riveted by the blow-by-blow account of the machinations leading up to Unilever's purchase of the company in 2000; not since Barbarians at the Gate has a corporate takeover been such a page-turner.
In the first few years after Unilever took over, Ben & Jerry's high quality standards took a nosedive as the new corporate bosses tried to cut costs. But the independent board that Ben & Jerry's fought to include in the legal agreements governing the sale eventually started flexing its muscles and continues to do so today, maintaining control over Ben & Jerry's products and social mission (including the noteworthy example of a living wage for all of its workers).
The book ends on an optimistic note, citing the independent board as well as current Unilever CEO Paul Polman's outspoken commitment to sustainability -- which sounds a lot like the values that Ben & Jerry's held from its humble beginnings.
Edmondson's book was the perfect read for Thanksgiving weekend, in the spirit of both happy eating and appreciating what's important. Everyone who wants to see business be more fair and just, but also wants a deeper appreciation for how hard that is to achieve, should read Ice Cream Social.
I am reinspired to curl up with a pint of Ben & Jerry's at the end of a long day, at least a day when I've managed to squeeze in a run. I'm less inspired to start watching the Knicks again, but we'll save that for another post.
July 10, 2015
This is a book all about the history of Ben and Jerry's, the ice cream company from Vermont which began in the late 1970's. It describes all the trials and tribulations the wacky team of Ben and Jerry (and other wacky characters on their management and board of directors) over the years, including the painful acquisition by Unilever in the early 21st century.
It was painful because Ben and Jerry's was always kind of a radical company, unusually invested in social activism. As we all know. I took a lot of this book with a grain of salt, because the author obviously has a lot of affection for this company and these men, and I felt like it might have been biased (although, I don't really know... I have no reason to think that Ben or Jerry are not as they appear to be - i.e. profoundly interested in social activism). Also, the book does not flinch or shy away from depicting Ben and Jerry's flaws--particularly Ben, who seems like he can be very difficult to work with. Ben can be stubborn to a fault and makes bad decisions at times.
The author never actually got to interview either Ben or Jerry, although the book impressively does not really suffer from this. He's done his research and interviewed so many others that you kind of feel like he HAS talked with Ben and Jerry directly. But he didn't--these two told him they "don't want to relive the past."
The book is really about the concept of "linked prosperity," which means that Ben and Jerry's entire business philosophy is about doing the greatest good for all involved, meaning not only the business but also its employees and society as a whole. They wanted to make money, AND spread the wealth to all employees, AND give to charity more than most businesses. The book really conveys how difficult it is to successfully do all these things.
I liked how in the book's intro, they not only list all the main players (i.e. company executives who were interviewed) so you can keep them straight, but it also lists favorite flavors. Cherry Garcia seems to have the plurality vote.
It was painful because Ben and Jerry's was always kind of a radical company, unusually invested in social activism. As we all know. I took a lot of this book with a grain of salt, because the author obviously has a lot of affection for this company and these men, and I felt like it might have been biased (although, I don't really know... I have no reason to think that Ben or Jerry are not as they appear to be - i.e. profoundly interested in social activism). Also, the book does not flinch or shy away from depicting Ben and Jerry's flaws--particularly Ben, who seems like he can be very difficult to work with. Ben can be stubborn to a fault and makes bad decisions at times.
The author never actually got to interview either Ben or Jerry, although the book impressively does not really suffer from this. He's done his research and interviewed so many others that you kind of feel like he HAS talked with Ben and Jerry directly. But he didn't--these two told him they "don't want to relive the past."
The book is really about the concept of "linked prosperity," which means that Ben and Jerry's entire business philosophy is about doing the greatest good for all involved, meaning not only the business but also its employees and society as a whole. They wanted to make money, AND spread the wealth to all employees, AND give to charity more than most businesses. The book really conveys how difficult it is to successfully do all these things.
I liked how in the book's intro, they not only list all the main players (i.e. company executives who were interviewed) so you can keep them straight, but it also lists favorite flavors. Cherry Garcia seems to have the plurality vote.
July 27, 2021
Ben and Jerry are friends of my wife's family, but their professional history doesn't come up when we're sitting around the porch, and it would be kind of awkward to ask. So I wanted to familiarize myself with the story of the company's ups and downs - their growth, the sale, the rough patches, and the way they pioneered the ethical corporation. This book did the trick.
I'm a big believer in the idea that the religion of shareholder value has been a huge mistake, and that we need to evolve to an inclusive, long-term-focused version of capitalism ASAP. As Ben says in the book, "Businesses are the most powerful institutions on the planet." Just by demonstrating that that power can be used for good, the team at Ben and Jerry's has gone a long way toward realizing their vision of "linked prosperity" between their business, their employees, their suppliers, their customers and local communities, and the world at large. It's inspiring stuff.
I'm a big believer in the idea that the religion of shareholder value has been a huge mistake, and that we need to evolve to an inclusive, long-term-focused version of capitalism ASAP. As Ben says in the book, "Businesses are the most powerful institutions on the planet." Just by demonstrating that that power can be used for good, the team at Ben and Jerry's has gone a long way toward realizing their vision of "linked prosperity" between their business, their employees, their suppliers, their customers and local communities, and the world at large. It's inspiring stuff.
May 19, 2021
"I admit that twice two makes four is an excellent thing, but if we are to give everything its due, twice two makes five is sometimes a very charming thing too." - Dostoevsky’s Notes from Underground
The author quotes Dostoevsky at the onset to set the tone for the book and it captures the sentiments of the Soul of Ben & Jerry’s exceptionally. The consistent humour and ice cream puns make it a delightful read. But in between the humour, it also manages to weave the events in the company’s history into a beautiful story: the origin of various ice cream flavours, the impressive marketing campaigns to address competition, and above all, being socially responsible at every step of the way. It rekindles hope in the spirit of responsible capitalism and makes a very strong case for volunteering to bring change and adopt sustainable practices. Along the way, the founders face complex dilemmas but they manage to keep the company’s values and mission unscathed and thriving. Make it your next read if you love responsible businesses, 60s counter cultural movements, good marketing, ice cream or any of the above.
PS: Particularly amusing is the mention of every person’s fav B&J’s ice cream flavours when introduced in the book
The author quotes Dostoevsky at the onset to set the tone for the book and it captures the sentiments of the Soul of Ben & Jerry’s exceptionally. The consistent humour and ice cream puns make it a delightful read. But in between the humour, it also manages to weave the events in the company’s history into a beautiful story: the origin of various ice cream flavours, the impressive marketing campaigns to address competition, and above all, being socially responsible at every step of the way. It rekindles hope in the spirit of responsible capitalism and makes a very strong case for volunteering to bring change and adopt sustainable practices. Along the way, the founders face complex dilemmas but they manage to keep the company’s values and mission unscathed and thriving. Make it your next read if you love responsible businesses, 60s counter cultural movements, good marketing, ice cream or any of the above.
PS: Particularly amusing is the mention of every person’s fav B&J’s ice cream flavours when introduced in the book
October 1, 2018
An interesting read, well-researched and personal. Amazing how two regular people saw a way to make the world better, and are still alive to see big companies starting to move in the direction of social consciousness.
October 22, 2024
One of the most thought-provoking business books I’ve read in a long time. Much of it is not directly relevant to my current position, but it’s so unique and interesting that it gives me lots to think about for a long time to come.
August 10, 2018
Great if you want to see a case study of a company with good intentions trying to build a company that fosters progressive change.
March 14, 2019
This is not the kind of book I usually read, but it was very interesting and made me think a lot about the power of big business. I’m a social worker so usually don’t think about that:)
August 20, 2019
required school reading but I'm still counting it!!! at least it was a little bit interesting, very standard business writing
December 19, 2023
Actually a very interesting book on the evolution of Ben&Jerry’s. Just a tad long!
Enjoy!
Enjoy!
November 22, 2014
Ice Cream Social should be required reading for every MBA student, as well as anyone who might criticize Ben & Jerry's for "selling out" to big corporate interests. As with most things, the reality of running a socially and environmentally minded business is much more complicated.
Edmondson has impressive access to current and former B&J board members and employees (excluding Ben and Jerry themselves). He sprinkles the book with enough amusing anecdotes to keep it lively, though occasionally it gets a bit dry.
There are many interesting philosophical questions at the heart of the Ben & Jerry's story. Would it have been better for the company to stay small and perfectly aligned with its original mission, rather than become part of the Unilever global conglomerate? Or is B&J's doing more good now that Unilever can amplify the brand globally? Can socially/environmentally businesses and profit-driven corporations ever truly co-exist under one roof? Edmondson makes clear that there will always have to be give and take when these disparate players join forces to pursue linked prosperity.
Though "sustainability" is all the rage as a marketing term in today's business world, we need more books like Ice Cream Social to actually define what sustainability means in action. Ultimately, the B&J lesson is that sustainability -- in supply chain, labor relations, social activism, etc. -- can never be truly attained; it will always be on the horizon. Most importantly, those values must always be at the core of the company's mission. The B&J model, with an independent board of directors set up in perpetuity, suggests that the mission can live on. Maybe there's hope for this free market system of ours after all.
Edmondson has impressive access to current and former B&J board members and employees (excluding Ben and Jerry themselves). He sprinkles the book with enough amusing anecdotes to keep it lively, though occasionally it gets a bit dry.
There are many interesting philosophical questions at the heart of the Ben & Jerry's story. Would it have been better for the company to stay small and perfectly aligned with its original mission, rather than become part of the Unilever global conglomerate? Or is B&J's doing more good now that Unilever can amplify the brand globally? Can socially/environmentally businesses and profit-driven corporations ever truly co-exist under one roof? Edmondson makes clear that there will always have to be give and take when these disparate players join forces to pursue linked prosperity.
Though "sustainability" is all the rage as a marketing term in today's business world, we need more books like Ice Cream Social to actually define what sustainability means in action. Ultimately, the B&J lesson is that sustainability -- in supply chain, labor relations, social activism, etc. -- can never be truly attained; it will always be on the horizon. Most importantly, those values must always be at the core of the company's mission. The B&J model, with an independent board of directors set up in perpetuity, suggests that the mission can live on. Maybe there's hope for this free market system of ours after all.
January 20, 2014
I really enjoyed this book. I am currently studying international development at college, and so I really enjoyed Ice Cream Social's discussion of Ben & Jerry's 3-part social mission. Amazingly, I hadn't realized before reading this book that Ben & Jerry's was anything other than a small, quirky Vermont business that made delicious ice cream. I'd encountered the idea of corporate giving before, but had never heard of a social mission--of a business attempting to integrate social and environmental good into every stage of their production. This idea is revolutionary and definitely changed the way that I think.
As other reviewers have mentioned, this book is somewhat dense for a casual reader. I enjoyed the book, but got a little bogged down in the 2nd half with the history of Ben & Jerry's takeover. Nevertheless, this is an important book that will hopefully increase awareness of incorporating social mission into a business. I have already loaned this book out to a friend and hope that it will spark many conversations.
As other reviewers have mentioned, this book is somewhat dense for a casual reader. I enjoyed the book, but got a little bogged down in the 2nd half with the history of Ben & Jerry's takeover. Nevertheless, this is an important book that will hopefully increase awareness of incorporating social mission into a business. I have already loaned this book out to a friend and hope that it will spark many conversations.
January 5, 2014
Ice Cream Social is a terrific book that tells a compelling, improbable, and vitally important story for our time. It’s also a lot of fun to read. Ben & Jerry and Jeff Furman (“the ampersand”) have brought courage, integrity, and a zany, fun-loving, irreverent creativity to a deeply serious, pioneering purpose, “linked prosperity”: as the company prospers, so should all the employees, customers, suppliers, “and other living things that contribute to its success.” It’s a roller coaster of a journey. The company doesn’t always prosper, and the forces arrayed against it, external and internal, are formidable. Brad Edmondson tells the story with clarity, wit, and in sparkling detail, with compassion for its characters but pulling no punches. It is an important book, because Ben & Jerry’s has created a new way of doing business – and, equally important, new reasons for doing business. Their story has lessons aplenty for people trying to make a difference in business or in any other organizational setting.
May 4, 2014
Modern Day Trojan Horse - If you are interested in working for a mission-based company that is trying to change the world for the better, this book is for you. Ben & Jerry's is one of the companies that pioneered the socially- responsible-company movement in the 1980s, and is still challenging conventional wisdom today. Although not the first book about B&J, it is the fist one to tell the "whole story," which includes the latest chapter of how B&J is helping the much larger Unilever, now its parent company, improve its socially responsible business practices around the world. My brother-in-law Chuck Lacy is profiled in this book as its first president. Although it's non-fiction, the book reads like a novel with lots of human drama along the way. It was an inspiration to read for me since I work at a mission-driven company as well, Berrett-Koehler Publishers. We are the proud publishers of Ice Cream Social. This book is full of best practices for those who want to bring meaning and purpose to our work lives.
January 18, 2014
I have to admit, this took quite some time to finish and I was tempted to start something else. While well-written and full of interesting information about the social mission of Ben & Jerry's and the creators, this book may be "too much". It tries to give a whole and accurate portrayal of the history, social mission, business position, an general culture of B&J's, and it does that within very dense, information-heavy 250 pages.
Overall, it was intersting and a good read, especially considering this is now such a major company and it seems that consumers now know so little about it. I would recommend it in specific instances, but not as a "fun" or "beach/summer" read.
Overall, it was intersting and a good read, especially considering this is now such a major company and it seems that consumers now know so little about it. I would recommend it in specific instances, but not as a "fun" or "beach/summer" read.
June 9, 2014
I wasn't familiar with the Ben & Jerry's story, so this account was very interesting. Even though Ben & Jerry didn't participate, their partner Jeff did, so I believe the stories were accurate. The company wanted to be more than a money & ice cream making giant; they wanted to make a difference in the community. And when you take a social stand as a business, things can get a little rocky, and it's easy to "sell out". It was certainly a struggle, and it's hard to say if this was a happy ending or not (depends on who you ask), but the book was a good example of how it pays (in customer loyalty) to provide value and to be an advocate something that your customer and your employees believe in.
April 28, 2014
I really enjoyed this book. While I had heard some of the history, there was a lot I didn't know. Brad's writing is very accessible, meaning that a layperson with no business background, such as myself, could easily follow even the areas that delved deep into the business practices od Ben & Jerry's. An enlightening read!
September 16, 2014
This is a great book if you want to know the inside story of Ben & Jerry's. If you want more of a "How To" type book I recommend you read Conscious Capitalism: Liberating the Heroic Spirit of Business
July 24, 2014
this was a really interesting book about folks struggling to sustain a true socially responsible business.
August 12, 2014
Thought it was a good book and the struggle of Ben and Jerry's. The way the company was sold has created a great way for some of the values of the organization to continue.
January 20, 2016
A fascinating case study of the acquisition of small, idiosyncratic company with a social mission by a large, profit-driven corporation
March 18, 2019
It hasn't been easy. Kinda tuned out at times. Great anecdotes.
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