Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams has long demonstrated an ability to grow at a deliberate pace. The Ohio-based dairy processor — which finished 2025 north of $150 million in revenue — is now nationally recognized, a notable evolution from its small beginnings in Columbus, Ohio, where it remains headquartered.

Nearly 25 years ago, founder Jeni Britton launched Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream with a single stand at Columbus’ North Market, just steps from the company’s current downtown headquarters. Surrounded by artisan vendors, Britton introduced an ice cream concept built around two categories: beloved classics and a rotating menu of seasonal, sometimes even daily, flavors.

"Jeni learned early on the importance of balance in our offerings. In her days before Jeni's, she changed the menu almost every day. If a customer returned for a scoop of Salty Caramel, and we didn't have it, they would be disappointed," says Poe Timmons, interim CEO, who has been with the company for nearly a decade. "That experience taught us the importance of balancing classic flavors with more adventurous offerings, often inspired by ingredients we discovered while walking the market."

VIDEO | Jenni’s Splendid Ice Creams Introduces a New Flavor

From the start, community played a central role in the brand, Timmons adds. "Our company was about bringing people together over ice cream. That Fellowship Model, supporting the communities we serve, has stayed with us."

Jeni’s takes pride in being a Certified B Corp., a designation that reflects a company’s commitment to social and environmental responsibility through a rigorous certification process. "Ingredient sourcing is extremely important to us," Timmons says.

While great-tasting products made with carefully sourced ingredients are central to the brand’s success, Timmons believes the "community-first" mindset truly sets Jeni’s apart. Another differentiator, she adds, is the company’s focus on being a great employer and fostering long-term career growth.

Timmons points to a small handbook called "Flavor Notes" employees receive when hired. The handbook includes messages such as "Use this book to guide your decisions during your time at Jeni’s" and "Turn your magic up." Another note reads, "You are an unstoppable force for good."

"I truly love being at Jeni’s," Timmons says. "Like any company, we’re imperfect, but imperfect in a way that leaves room for creativity and growth."

Employee events at company headquarters are another morale booster. For example, a Halloween party was a huge hit when employees brought their children to the offices to trick or treat. The winning team donned Wizard of Oz costumes.

"Of course, we provide many other things for employees, like healthcare plans and a 401(k) match. Parental leave for moms and dads is another benefit." Timmons notes. "A significant benefit we offer is after three years with the company employees receive a month off as a paid sabbatical. We also have Jeni’s Leadership Intensive, where we take high-potential team members from our scoop shops, warehouses and home office and bring them in for a week where they learn things like public speaking, how our supply chain works, and even design their own flavors with our innovation team, which they get to present to our senior leadership."

Chief Marketing Officer Scott Hargrove adds, "Many things set us apart, from a recipe that has been honed for more than 20 years and our commitment to being a Certified B Corp,, but at the heart of it is that we don’t treat ice cream like a traditional dessert. We treat it like an experience.

"We think about ice cream as something more," he continues. "In my nearly two years here, we’ve never released a flavor simply because it tastes good. We always ask, ‘What’s the story?’ and ‘How do we create a more memorable experience for the guest?’ That’s what defines super-premium to me."

Changing consumer preferences

Jeni’s, still owned by its original founders along with a private equity firm that funded the company’s growth, went from a single stand at an artisan marketplace to operating more than 90 scoop shops nationwide and available at more than 15,000 wholesale grocery stores. Along the way, the company added frozen novelties via its ice cream bars.

"We grow responsibly while keeping the soul of the business at the forefront," Timmons reveals. "While our growth has been significant over the past few years, our ingredient suppliers largely have been able to grow alongside us. We made sure to never lose our culture as we grew. Ultimately, it comes down to what the consumer wants. We have had failed flavors and wildly successful ones. Luckily many more of the latter than the former."

Jeni’s follows shifting consumer habits closely. Perhaps the biggest change for all dairy processors is the health and wellness trend, which includes a growing number of consumers taking GLP-1 medicines. Jeni’s is an indulgent ice cream brand, with no interest in adding protein or other functional ingredients that could affect the taste of its products. When consumers choose to indulge, Jeni’s aims to deliver on that moment.

"It is something the whole industry has to watch," Timmons affirms. "When you indulge, you want the product to be really, really good. And we are a really, really good ice cream. We are not changing the quality of ingredients due to this trend. In fact, we are leaning into it. People really care what they are putting in their bodies."

Adds Beth Stallings, senior director of innovation and communications, "You can pronounce the name of every ingredient in our products."

Jeni’s is in a different place than it was five or 10 years ago, Hargrove continues. "We used to introduce flavors at scoop shops, where customers could try the flavor and learn about it from a brand ambassador. We are growing, and so many customers are being introduced to the brand at wholesale, retail, and often in markets where we don’t have scoop shops. Given that shift, we are trying to balance crowd-pleasing flavors we know will have appeal with flavors that are distinctly Jeni’s."

Jeni’s also emphasizes staying true to its values, Hargrove continues. "Quality, creativity, and showing up for our communities have always been at the heart of Jeni's. Growth doesn't change that."

Notes Hargrove: "As we grow, storytelling helps us capture and share the feeling people have when they experience Jeni’s. Ice cream is an emotional experience. It’s tied to childhood memories, shared moments, and human connection. Storytelling brings those feelings to life. For example, as we worked on a Cherry Blossom flavor, we kept noticing the same thing — it tasted like bubblegum, the kind you had as a kid. That feeling of nostalgia eventually inspired our summer 2025 Bubble Gum flavor.

"When we are at our best, storytelling runs through everything we do, from how we show up in shops and retail to how we talk about our flavors," Hargrove adds.

That philosophy carries through the brand’s marketing approach, led by Hargrove across social, press, and email. "We really lean into those stories," he stresses.

That approach has resonated. Jeni’s has built a loyal consumer fan base by prioritizing authenticity over promotion. "We try not to ‘sell’ to people. We want to come across as an authentic brand with an authentic story. If we ever feel like our message starts to sound like a sales pitch, we back off," Hargrove explains. "Our fans appreciate that."

One example of this approach was Jeni’s collaboration with artist Cj Hendry for the introduction of its Opaque limited-edition flavor, which included a three-day immersive pop-up ice cream shop in August in New York City. "We approached Cj because she is an incredible artist and also a fan of the brand. She had the idea to create a black ice cream, and we turned it into an experience for customers. The product quickly took off," Hargrove recalls.

Jeni’s will continue to grow at wholesale and retail, Hargrove adds. "We have a saying: ‘Slow is smooth and smooth is fast.’ It means we haven’t chased quick wins. We are intentional and thoughtful about how we move wholesale. That approach has worked, as evidenced by consistent double-digit growth. We make sure we have the right partner, right products and right format.

"A big focus for us is expanding into novelties," he continues. "We’ve seen encouraging early momentum in novelties with sandwiches and bars, and we’re continuing to explore what’s next."

Jeni’s views novelties as an important category given its size and the opportunity it presents to introduce new consumers to the brand, Hargrove maintains. "To get there, we will approach novelties with the same level of craft and care as our ice creams. Nothing gets released unless it feels considered, intentional, and true to Jeni's. We are excited about what comes next in this space."

Innovation station

Despite scaling its ice cream with four manufacturing partners currently, all product innovation takes place at Jeni’s Columbus headquarters, under the leadership of Stallings. When we visited the facility, we were among the first outside the company to try a new flavor — House Coffee — that launched this month.

"When people think of Jeni’s, we want them to think we have the best coffee ice cream," Stallings reveals. "Our goal was to make an ice cream that tastes the way coffee smells; earthy and sweet and rich. And we believe we’ve done that with our new House Coffee ice cream."

To develop its new House Coffee, which we can attest delivers a bold, coffee-forward profile, Jeni’s partnered with Verve Coffee Roasters in California, whom Stallings calls a "great partner." She adds that Jeni’s can produce the flavor at scale more efficiently than its previous coffee flavor, Coffee with Cream & Sugar, and without sacrificing quality. What makes House Coffee stand out is the use of Verve’s coffee in two ways: its instant blend for deep coffee flavor and its espresso blend, which adds fruity notes to the ice cream along with slight texture from the grounds.

"Nothing hides in ice cream. Use a subpar ingredient, and you’ll taste every impurity, every flaw. So, when we’re making a flavor centered on a single ingredient, like coffee, it has to be the best coffee we can find," Stallings asserts. "Traceability was really important. We needed to know where the coffee came from, how it was processed at the farm, and how it was sourced and roasted and by whom. That’s how we came to Verve. It produces great coffee — including some of the best instant coffee we’ve tried — and shares our commitment to responsible sourcing."

Beyond House Coffee, Stallings discussed Jeni’s broader formulation process and how the company determines which flavors appear in scoop shops and at retail, both on a limited and full-time basis. The company often works on a flavor for eight to 12 months before launch, although House Coffee took more than a year to come to fruition, in part due to the process of selecting the right coffee partner.

Some flavors come together quickly, while others go through a series of edits and tweaks — eight being the magic number — until the flavors are just right. "We like to joke that we know a flavor is ready when it’s so good it makes you cuss," Stallings says with a laugh. "It’s that involuntary, happy reaction that we’re going for. When we hit that, we know we’ve nailed it."

Jeni’s Double Dough, the brand's take on cookie dough ice cream, was an outlier, taking more than 40 iterations to perfect.

"Sometimes it’s just about making small tweaks from one version to the next. Other times, it means changing the entire formula of the ice cream," Stallings explains. "For Double Dough, we really wanted the ice cream itself to taste like cookie dough. We'd gotten close a lot of times, but something was always missing.

"Finally, Hector Change, our senior R&D manager, had the idea to replace white sugar with brown sugar in the ice cream, creating a brown sugar custard," she continues. "We took one bite and we all said, ‘That's it. That's the flavor.’ Landing on the final flavor is all about asking these kinds of questions and being open to pushing to do something we haven’t done before."

Ice cream collaborations can take even longer to bring to market. Financial agreements must be reached, and it’s important to Jeni’s that collaborators sample and approve flavors before they're finalized. "Every collaborator is different," Stallings says. "Sometimes they come to us with an idea, other times we come to them. No matter where the idea originates, it’s important that every collaboration is a true collaboration. Some folks come to our offices and taste with us. Others, we’ll send samples and taste over video chat."

Many high-profile collaborators are drawn to Jeni’s because of the company’s ability to create experiences and emotional connection, Stallings adds. Ted Lasso Biscuits With the Boss, released in 2023, is a prime example. The goal was to make consumers feel like they were part of the Apple TV series, whose fourth season is expected to premiere later this year. Jeni’s will also release two collaboration flavors with the Netflix and Shondaland TV series, "Bridgerton." The ice creams, Queen Charlotte Sponge Cake and Earl Grey Creme Brulee, are designed to pull viewers deeper into the world of the show.

Collaborations are often limited-edition offerings. Jeni’s organizes its flavors into three categories. Classic flavors are traditional offerings sold year-round, with many scoop shops carrying 13 or 14 Classics. Seasonal flavors are available for a limited time, such as Strawberry Buttermilk, which is offered in the spring. Limited Edition flavors are often one-time releases, though exceptions exist.

One such exception is Jeni’s Double Dough. Initially released as a collaboration with lifestyle brand, Lonely Ghost, it was then reintroduced as a seasonal flavor. It sold so well that "there were Instagram accounts dedicated to bringing it back," Stallings recalls, adding the fandom coupled with how delicious the flavor truly is earned it a spot on the regular menu.

When determining which flavors appear in scoop shops, Jeni’s ensures a balanced assortment and closely monitors customer preferences. "It’s a mix of art and science," Stallings notes. "Part is asking what flavors and ingredients are exciting us right now. Part is looking at sales data to understand what customers are gravitating toward and when so we can meet them where they are."

Stallings, whose favorite Jeni’s flavor is Tropical Bloom, says the company’s new frozen novelty line was a year and a half in the making. "Scaling novelties is a very different process compared to pints," she explains. "We wanted to maintain the Jeni’s ethos and every hallmark of our ice cream, including its indulgent nature. We also wanted to stand out. Frozen novelties are a growing but competitive category, and it was important for us to enter it thoughtfully. I’m really proud of what we created."

The future of Jeni’s

According to Timmons, the future looks bright. Household penetration for Jeni’s products remains relatively small, she notes. "There is still so much room for growth," she says.

Consumers can also expect more collaborations moving forward. During our visit, the company was finalizing its "Bridgerton" partnership. "We average two to three collaborations per year," Hargrove explains. "We need to continue building top-of-funnel awareness, so we’re expanding our media investment and increasing the number of collaborations.

"We’re also being more ambitious with local marketing to strengthen our community connections," Hargrove concludes. "There's a real sense of momentum right now. We’re bringing more people into the brand while staying true to the craft and values that built Jeni's."