The founders of Ben & Jerry’s consider buying the ice brand back from Unilever. That writes the Bloomberg news agency on the basis of anonymous insiders. Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, after whom the brand is named, would have had exploratory conversations about this. According to Bloomberg, it is not yet certain whether they actually make an offer.
Cohen and Greenfield founded the ice brand in 1978 and sold it in 2000 for 326 million dollars in food and care means group Unilever. Ben & Jerry’s became known for his special flavors, but also for the often progressive social ideals that the brand connected to.
In the meantime Ben & Jerry’s may be worth a few billions of dollars, so the founders would need co-investors to buy back the company. Unilever is currently working on its complete ice cream division through an IPO. “Ben & Jerry’s is an important part of the ice activities and is not for sale,” a Unilever spokesperson responded.