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September 17, 2007 Media Contact: Vanderbilt University Speakers Committee presents Ice Cream Magnates, Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield of Ben and Jerry's Inc.NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Vanderbilt University Speakers Committee will open its 2007-08 keynote season with "An Evening of Social Responsibility, Radical Business Philosophy and Free Dessert For All," hosting Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, co-founders of Ben and Jerry's Homemade Inc., on Tuesday, October 2, at 7:00 pm in Vanderbilt's Student Life Center. Since Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield opened their first ice cream parlor in Burlington, Vermont in a renovated gas station in1978, "Ben & Jerry's" ice cream has become a household name. It was additionally accepted as the first ice cream brand to be taken aboard the Space Shuttle. Cohen and Greenfield are the men behind one of the most talked-about and least conventional success stories in American business: As founders of Ben & Jerry's Homemade, Inc., they built a store-front venture into a $300 million ice cream empire by making social responsibility and creative management strengths instead of weaknesses. Throughout their successful business careers, Ben and Jerry have remained committed to progressive social and environmental issues. Childhood friends who went separate ways after high school, the two reunited in 1977 to fulfill a dream they both shared: running a food business. They eventually settled on ice cream, and one year later, after a bit of research (and a $5 Penn State correspondence course in ice cream making), they opened Ben & Jerry's Homemade ice cream parlor in Burlington. The duo soon became known throughout Vermont for rich, unusual flavors and a community-oriented approach to business. They sponsored a "Fall Down Festival" and a free outdoor movie festival, and celebrated their anniversaries with a Free Cone Day. As the company grew, Ben's jobs included scooper and taste-tester, truck driver, marketing director, salesperson and president. Jerry began by making all the ice cream, but as the company expanded into new markets he soon found himself handling everything from distribution to orientation to employee motivation. With their best-selling Ben & Jerry's Double-Dip: Lead with Your Values and Make Money, Too, they created a nuts-and-bolts guidebook to the promise and pitfalls of "values-led" business, as well as an inspiring wake-up call about the growing international influence of the "socially conscience" or "mission driven" corporation. Today a model for American business success, Ben and Jerry have been recognized for fostering commitment to social responsibility by the Council on Economic Priorities, which awarded them the Corporate Giving Award and by the U.S. Small Business Administration. Their lecture brings all of their business points to life in a rousing anecdotal tribute to the American entrepreneurial spirit marked with a radical business philosophy while providing every audience member with free Ben & Jerry's ice cream. This event is free for all Vanderbilt University students, faculty and staff at the Sarratt Box Office in the Sarratt Student Center on Vanderbilt campus. Non-Vanderbilt students tickets are available for $5, Sarratt Box Office and Ticketmaster outlets only, no online or telecharge sales. General admission tickets are $10 at all Ticketmaster outlets and online at www.ticketmaster.com or 615.255.9600. Tickets go on sale September 17, 2007. For more information, call 615.322.2471. |