Synopses & Reviews
Review
“In 2011, the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center gave Ben and Jerrys one of its highest honors. This book explains why.”
—Martin Luther King III, human rights activist
“As this fine telling of the Ben and Jerrys story indicates, its harder than it looks to integrate consumer capitalism and political integrity. There are lessons here: hard ones and of course some sweet ones.”
—Bill McKibben, author of Oil and Honey: The Education of an Unlikely Activist
“A fascinating look behind the scenes of a company as beloved as the ice cream it makes.”
—Barbara Ehrenreich, New York Times bestselling author and Founding Editor, Economic Hardship Reporting Project
“The pioneering experience of Ben and Jerrys shows that corporate social responsibility can, thankfully, be contagious. Brad Edmondson takes us behind the scenes to tell this riveting and timely story.”
—United States Senator Patrick Leahy
“This book reveals the true ingredients that go into every pint of Ben and Jerrys: GMO-free cream, fair-trade cane sugar, and a lot of blood, sweat, and tears.”
—Eric Utne, founder, Utne Reader
“What once was radical is becoming mainstream. By earning B Corp certification, Ben and Jerrys has proven that you can sell without selling out and scale with integrity. Much of the global movement to redefine success in business stands on its shoulders, and much of what we know about better practices and better governance can be traced to lessons the company learned the hard way. Finally, this important story has been well and completely told.”
—Jay Coen Gilbert, cofounder, B Lab
“Brad Edmondson vividly conveys the passion, conflicts, and raw humanity behind an iconic brand. He gives us an uncensored look at how smart, caring people poured their hearts and souls into making Ben and Jerrys the standard-bearer for ‘caring capitalism. The story leaves the reader in awe of all they achieved, and it also imparts invaluable lessons by talking frankly about their failures. It puts on full display the contradictions and painful choices that eventually confront all successful mission-driven businesses. Its a journey into uncharted territory.”
—Rink Dickinson, cofounder and copresident, and Rob Everts, copresident, Equal Exchange
“The founders of Ben and Jerrys put up a long and determined fight to keep their dream of a socially responsible company intact. Cutthroat capitalism doesnt make it easy for entrepreneurs who want living wages for their employees, environmentally sustainable ingredients, and socially beneficial business practices. Brad Edmondson gives us a fascinating look behind the scenes of a company as beloved as the ice cream it makes.”
—Barbara Ehrenreich, New York Times bestselling author and Founding Editor, Economic Hardship Reporting Project
“Ice Cream Social is a factory tour of the ups and downs and arounds of Ben and Jerrys. We get an insiders description of the struggle of two guys who strived through good times and bad to achieve their mission to make the worlds best ice cream, pursue social change, and treat both employees and shareholders fairly. Much of the time, they succeeded.”
—Madeleine M. Kunin, former governor of Vermont
“St. Albans Cooperative has been a proud partner of Ben and Jerrys since the beginning. Through all of its organizational changes, it has remained committed to its core values, family dairy farms, and the cooperative. I am proud to be part of this story.”
—Ralph McNall, dairy farmer, St. Albans Cooperative Creamery
“When Calvert first heard about Ben and Jerrys, we wondered whether our mission of social investing could even include a company that sold ice cream treats. This book shows how the founders convinced us. For decades, they have been a stellar example of walking the talk.”
—Wayne Silby, Founding Chair, Calvert Funds, and cofounder, Social Venture Network
“A fascinating business morality tale . . . Edmondson offers an entertaining and enlightening account of the highs and lows that can be encountered in the quest to give capitalism a soul.”
—Lynn A. Stout, Distinguished Professor of Corporate and Business Law, Cornell University Law School
Synopsis
For three decades now, the people of Ben and Jerry's have been pursuing a radical business philosophy that they call “linked prosperity.” They believe that progressive social change and profit are equally important; that businesses should share their wealth with employees, suppliers, customers, and the environment; and that every group can prosper at the same time. Living up to these beliefs means signing up for an endless struggle—its fun when youre doing it right, but its not 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 Ben and Jerrys. No previous book has fully explained the bad decisions that forced the companys sale to Unilever, one of the worlds biggest corporations. None have described the unique contract Ben and Jerrys negotiated to preserve its commitment to linked prosperity—and none have described the working relationship between Ben and Jerrys and Unilever that lets the company pursue its mission on a much larger stage. Brad Edmondson tells the story with a journalists eye for telling details, dramatic moments, and memorable characters. This book offers eye-opening lessons about how socially conscious companies succeed, fail, make the best of it when things go wrong, and keep striving for greatness. Its a funny, sad, surprising, and ultimately hopeful story.
Synopsis
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 mission: making the world's best ice cream, supporting progressive causes, and sharing the company's success with all stakeholders: 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.
Synopsis
Ben and Jerrys has always been committed to an insanely ambitious three-part mission: making the worlds best ice cream, supporting progressive causes, and sharing the companys success with all stakeholders: employees, suppliers, distributors, customers, cows, everybody. But it hasnt 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 and Jerrys 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. Its a funny, sad, surprising, and ultimately hopeful story.
Synopsis
Ice Cream Social: The Struggle for the Soul of Ben and Jerrys" is the first book to tell the complete story of a beloved companys inspiring rise, tragic mistakes, devastating fall, determined recovery, and ongoing renewal. For over three decades, Ben and Jerrys has tried to achieve “linked prosperity,” or the idea that the owners of the company should share their success with all of their stakeholders — employees, suppliers, distributors, customers, cows, everybody. Living up to this ideal is fun when youre doing it right, and it creates amazingly loyal customers, but it isnt easy. We gave the first draft to our friend Annie Leonard (author of The Story of Stuff), who wrote that she found it “fast-paced, with compelling, fully realized characters and a gripping narrative. I couldnt put the book down.”
Ice Cream Social is written for a general audience of students, entrepreneurs, ice cream fans, and others in the movement to combine profit and purpose. No other book has explained how the company came to be sold to Unilever, one of the worlds biggest corporations, even though the board of directors struggled for over a year to remain independent. The book is also the first to give a complete accounting of the unprecedented contract Ben and Jerrys negotiated with Unilever to preserve the three part mission, and it describes the complex working relationship that allows the company to pursue that mission on a much larger stage.
The author, Brad Edmondson, is an award-winning journalist, conference speaker, and business consultant; the co-founder of ePodunk.com; and the former editor-in-chief of American Demographics magazine, which covered social change and its impact on businesses and other institutions. Jeff Furman, who is known as “the ampersand in Ben and Jerrys,” wrote the companys first business plan and has been on its board of directors since 1982.
About the Author
Brad Edmondson is an award-winning journalist and business consultant, the co-founder of ePodunk.com, and former editor-in-chief of American Demographics magazine. Brad is a nationally recognized expert on consumer trends, advertising, and marketing, as well as a frequent keynote speaker at national conferences. Like Jeff, he is committed to advancing businesses that pursue a social mission. He also spent several years disguised as a hippie.
Epilogue author Jeff Furman helped write Ben and Jerrys first business plan in 1978; he has been a member of the companys Board of Directors since 1982 and Chair of the Board since 2010. He remained involved after the sale because he was trying to prevent Ben and Jerrys social mission from being destroyed.
Table of Contents
Chapter One: “Were Completely Insane, And We Need Your Help!”
Chapter Two: A New Kind Of Startup
Chapter Three: Progressive Sweatshop
Chapter Four: Staffing The Social Mission
Chapter Five: Money Starts Talking
Chapter Six: Yo, Im Not Your CEO
Chapter Seven: The Gulf Was So Wide
Chapter Eight: Leading With Progressive Values
Chapter Nine: Unacceptable Choices
Chapter Ten: The Sale Agreements
Chapter Eleven: A Thousand Cuts
Chapter Twelve: Counterattack
Chapter Thirteen: Pursuing Linked Prosperity
Epilogue By Jeff Furmam