Ben & Jerry’s co-founder Ben Cohen visited the Colgate University campus to talk about how the brand he founded mixes progressive values with business on Monday, April 20. Cohen delivered the talk in the Colgate Memorial Chapel to more than 300 attendees.
Cohen and co-founder Jerry Greenfield met in middle school gym class, where they were the slowest kids around the track, Cohen joked. The pair subsequently failed at many things, including college and pottery, before becoming extraordinarily successful in the ice cream industry. When deciding what kind of businessmen they wanted to be, they knew they wanted to do things differently.
Ben & Jerry’s, as an ice cream brand, placed particular emphasis on driving social change. Cohen believed that in a capitalist society, business and social responsibility are often viewed as incompatible. However, his vision is for a company that can do more good than harm. For Cohen, that means buying ingredients directly from local farmers or doing business with banks that invest specifically in economically depressed urban neighborhoods.
He also noted that companies that lead with their progressive values are inherently self-marketing. While typical firms may have to do a lot of public relations work to curate an image, companies like Ben & Jerry’s are appealing as a result of their driving principles.
“People don’t want to buy products from companies whose only purpose is to maximize profits. So they hire these PR agencies and ad agencies to make [the company] look kind, funny, sexy,” Cohen said. “But in a values-led business … you don’t have to make up stories because you’re actually doing the stuff that people want.”
Cohen said that he believes corporations have an obligation to promote positive social change. This idea of “noblesse oblige” is rooted in Cohen’s view that they are now the most powerful actors in our society. Cohen said that corporations have an outsized political influence and should therefore work, as Ben & Jerry’s does, to use that influence for good.
“They control our elections through campaign contributions. They control our legislation through lobbyists. Now they control our media through ownership. And all of that is done in the narrow self-interest of business,” Cohen said. “Originally, the most powerful force was religion, and then the most powerful force came to be nation-states … The difference is that at least religion and government have as their purpose to improve the quality of life for people. Business has never had that as a purpose.”
While Cohen no longer owns his ice cream company, he remains a member of its independent board, an uncommon governance feature. The independent board was created when he and Greenfield sold the company to Unilever. The board’s purpose was to direct the company in a way that maintains its focus on activism and quality ice cream.
When Unilever announced it would sell its ice cream branch of products, Cohen tried to regain independence for his company by splitting off from the conglomerate. However, as the highest-grossing ice cream brand in the U.S., Unilever felt it was too valuable to sell to anyone but the highest bidder, The Magnum Ice Cream Co.
Cohen said that, under Magnum ownership, Ben & Jerry’s is drifting from its original mission. He said that certain aspects of its social activism, such as pro-Palestine messaging, have been stifled.
In response, Cohen has started the “Free Ben & Jerry’s” Movement with a goal to convince Magnum to sell the company to “socially-minded investors.” In pursuit of this, activists have created a petition campaign and use tactics such as placing Ben & Jerry’s stickers on Magnum products in grocery stores. Additionally, Cohen encouraged audience members to comment “Free Ben & Jerry’s” on Magnum’s Instagram posts.
Cohen was invited to Colgate by the Colgate College Democrats. This campus organization often hears from politicians, but invited Cohen to hear a fresh perspective from a democratic activist. Senior Samantha Johnson, Colgate Democrats Communications and Outreach Director, offered some insight into the desired impact of the talk.
“We want people to come away from this talk having learned that you do not have to sacrifice your values and morals to be successful, and that it is important to find something you love and are passionate about doing to feed your soul and feed your mind, not just your wallet,” Johnson said.
This messaging is one that permeates all levels of the company, down to individual shops. Sophomore Megan Sweatt is a former Ben & Jerry’s ice cream shop employee who attended Cohen’s talk. Sweatt enjoyed her experience working in an environment that promoted progressive values.
“I thought they did a good job of upholding those progressive values … It was just a really supportive environment,” Sweatt said. “Everybody’s having a good time, but also we knew that we were contributing to a good cause. That was motivating.”
Cohen’s talk often returned to the same point that it is possible to find a spiritual reward, as well as monetary, in a career. His advice for college students today was to remember one’s values in the job search and to find companies that align with them.
