Liberty Road

written by Stacey Lindsay

To get a sense of the tenacity of Jeni Britton, let's go back 27 years when Britton was an art student at Ohio State University. She was exploring painting and illustration when she began thinking about ice cream rather unconventionally. Ice cream was about scent and experience, thought Britton. It offered people a reason to gather. So she started making the frozen treat in her apartment. "And within a few months, I literally walked out of art class and went and opened a small ice cream stand in an indoor public market," says the creative entrepreneur.

That was in 1996. In the decades since, Britton has ideated, founded, and cultivated Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams, one of today's most beloved and unique ice cream brands.

To experience Jeni's is to jump into a world of folly—flavors like Savannah Buttermint, Skillet Cinnamon Roll, and Gooey Butter Cake reign. But even more so, to know the brand is to gain a sense—whether you realize it or not—of Britton's gut instinct. She is a beacon of authenticity—a truth that has underscored Britton's business journey and Jeni's success. "It's about creativity and guts," she says about starting a company. "Entrepreneurship is freedom."

Jeni Britton’s Inspiring Entrepreneurial Insights

#1: View Entrepreneurship through an Artistic Lens

"I think about poetry a lot. I read poetry […], and I incorporate the sort of method into everything I do, which is about removing excess. Anything that you're doing that is even one drop too much is taking the emphasis off where you want the focus. I think that way when I'm creating an ice cream. If there's anything extra here, it's taking focus away from what we want people to taste and experience."

#2: Think Like a Poet

"Poetry is efficiency. It's an efficiency of resources. That literally is the definition of business: removing complexity. And so, what we want to do, as poets, is get those stories across in the most efficient way possible. Poetry is about communication—and inspiring and activating. If we think of business through that lens, just think about what we can create."

#3: Consider People's Needs

"A good way to think about a business is, What do I need right now? What would I love to have right now? Whether it's something that's inspiring or something that's practical, think, What do I need? What do I wish existed in the world? and make that."

#4: Honor the Feminine

"I have protected my femininity all along. There is a very powerful force in femininity that is very seriously ignored in our culture."

#5: Build a Company versus a Business

"I love the word company versus the word business because company means people and means you're not alone. I love to say that my favorite business book is The Lord of the Rings. Thinking about fellowship, everybody brings in their awesomeness from very different places, and then together, they make something greater than the sum of its parts. If you think about building your business in that way, in building your company in that way, it's about who you're surrounding yourself with."

#6: Be a Nonconformist

"If you're going to start a company, you've got to be thinking differently, not just doing what other people are doing. And when you have that kind of original thinking, it's hard because people kind of come after you. People want to make you feel like you can't do it. In that, I would just say: Claim every step! Own it in your body.

#7: Protect Your Ownership and Equity

"I believe so much that for small businesses, especially for women and people of color, we need to be starting businesses and growing them. But importantly, if we can, to hold on to that equity and hold on to power. Because once you give that up, you're basically working for somebody else. And that's not what any of us really got into this for in the first place. Also, that's your power as you grow. That's what's going to shift the power dynamic in America."

#8: See Beyond Trends and Social Media

"I mean, I would just say, think of starting a company as starting a community. You do not have to be online at all. You can still do that in person. You don't have to, you know, follow the biggest trends going on in the world right now. You just have to be able to build a community around something that you and others care about. So finding that place where what you love to do matches up with what other people need or want, and there's value in the middle of that. So you figure out how you can be of value to other people."

#9: Never Underestimate Your Wisest Sage

"Absolutely give your instinct and your intuition its due. I think of instinct like atomic-level patterning. You can't describe it to somebody. It's based on just millions of little atomic things that come together to make a pattern, but you know, in your heart, what's the right step. And then you learn from that one step, and then you'll learn from the next step. And that just becomes an even greater powerful instinct with each step.”

We pulled these tips from our original conversation with Jeni and edited and condensed for clarity. To catch the full conversation, listen to the Liberty Road Podcast.