Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams is making a big play right in its hometown. On April 22, the Columbus-based company named David Stever, the recently ousted head of Ben & Jerry’s, as its new chief executive. The move links a national consumer-packaged-goods veteran with a local artisanal favorite that has been widening its grocery reach and rolling out franchising. For Columbus customers and employees, it signals that a beloved neighborhood brand is leaning harder into scale and operations under seasoned leadership.
What the company announced
In a press release shared via PR Newswire, Jeni's said Stever will steer the company's next phase of growth across scoop shops, grocery shelves, and its emerging franchising business. Chairman Brian Knez called the hire a win for the company and said, "We are thrilled to welcome David Stever as CEO of Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams." The announcement highlighted that Stever brings more than 25 years of consumer-packaged-goods experience to the Columbus-based brand.
Stever's Ben & Jerry's exit
Stever spent decades climbing the ranks at Ben & Jerry's and became CEO in 2023. Later, Ben & Jerry's told a U.S. court that its parent company, Unilever, removed him after clashes over the brand's public activism. That detail, and the broader dispute around it, was reported by the BBC. The episode has kept Stever in the news and makes his move into another top job especially notable.
What Jeni's is betting on
Jeni's reported that it operates more than 90 scoop shops across roughly 30 markets and that its ice cream pints are stocked in about 15,000 retail locations nationwide. Those outlets include Whole Foods, Target, Kroger, and Albertson's, according to the release from PR Newswire. The company is building out franchising through what it calls a Fellowship Model and is planning additional product formats and flavors as it grows. Taken together, that scale and ambition help explain why Jeni's went looking for leadership with deep CPG experience at this point.
Local angle
The hire lands as a headline-grabber for Columbus's food and retail scene. Crain's Cleveland Business covered the move, underscoring Jeni's Columbus headquarters and its growth aims. For local suppliers and shop crews, a stronger national push could eventually mean expanded distribution and more hiring. How soon that translates into new scoop shop openings around central Ohio is still an open question.
Brand risk and what to watch
Stever's split from Ben & Jerry's, and court filings that linked his removal to efforts to rein in the brand's social mission, could invite added scrutiny of how Jeni's presents itself in public, as earlier reporting laid out. That backdrop suggests Jeni's will be under pressure to balance an aggressive growth plan with the community-minded identity that helped make it a cult favorite. Observers will be keeping an eye on upcoming product launches, franchise deals, and any signals about cause-based marketing under the new CEO.
The company has framed Stever's arrival as a move to sharpen operations and fuel innovation. Expect more concrete details on store openings, new products, and franchising plans as Jeni's works through this next chapter.
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