la Frontera In the News

Austin Business Journal

January 23, 2004

The scoop: Ben & Jerry's opening in Central Texas

by Giselle Greenwood, Austin Business Journal Staff

The hippies are coming to Williamson County.

Ben & Jerry's Homemade Inc., the purveyor of ice cream named for rock stars and Woodstock icons, plans to open four stores in the Austin area. The first will begin scooping in Round Rock this March.

Three of the shops will be owned by Derek Su and Ki Shin's SuShin Interests Inc., with the first being in 1,200 square feet at Vintage Plaza in the La Frontera retail center at FM 1325 and La Frontera Boulevard.

That store is scheduled to open by mid-March, well in advance of Ben & Jerry's April 27 nationwide event during which Ben & Jerry's free ice cream is handed out.

Shin says he has his eye on a site at MoPac Expressway and Duval Road in Gracy Farms for the second Ben & Jerry's "ScoopShop," as the company calls its stores. Shin says he and Su have a letter of intent on a potential space in Gracy Farms, but the shop won't open until the end of 2004. The third location hasn't been determined, but Shin says he hopes to find one by mid-2005.

The fourth Ben & Jerry's will be a "PartnerShop," a program the company set up in 1987 to help local nonprofit organizations. The PartnerShop will be run by Austin-based LifeWorks, a nonprofit agency that serves at-risk and homeless youth.

PartnerShops are Ben & Jerry's stores that are independently owned and operated by community-based nonprofit organizations. Ben & Jerry's donates the retail space to nonprofits by waiving the franchise fees and allowing the organizations to retain proceeds to support their programs.

As for the Round Rock location, Su says he learned Central Texas was left in the cold when visiting a Ben & Jerry's on the West Coast.

"I was wondering where the closest Ben & Jerry's was to my house, and found out there weren't any in Texas," Su says. "As I looked into the company a little more and their philosophy, I thought it was a perfect fit for Austin."

"One of the reasons we chose to do a Ben & Jerry's is because of their social consciousness," Shin says. "Their whole mission is to enhance the community, and to truly become part of the community. That community feel was a right fit for Austin."

Su and Shin, who are old college buddies, own a handful of businesses around the area, but this is their first franchise. They also own a "bubble tea" room in Austin and a coffeehouse in San Marcos. Bubble tea features droplets of tapioca.

Vermont-based Ben & Jerry's doesn't pick just anyone to run a ScoopShop. Will Patten, director of retail operations, says franchisees go through a rigorous screening process.

"We screen for franchisees that buy into our values," Patten says. "We take our franchises very seriously because the franchisee carries the brand."

The Central Texas market had been studied for quite some time, Patten says. Ben & Jerry's hired The Buxton Co. Inc., a market consulting firm in Fort Worth, to study various cities nationwide. Central Texas topped the list.

"We like to find locations where people have a little extra money in their pockets and feel like indulging themselves," Patten says. "Whether it's kids, senior citizens ... it doesn't matter. Ben & Jerry's shops come in all shapes and sizes."

In choosing Round Rock, Shin says La Frontera was the perfect fit because of several factors, including the proximity of State Highway 45 and the buzz factor of the shopping center.

"La Frontera kept coming up in discussions, and we knew it would be the biggest and newest location," Shin says. "We knew it was going to be the latest hip location, so we felt that's where the first shop should be."

But being part of a worldwide franchise could present its own challenges. Austinites pride themselves on "keeping it local," so time will only tell if a Ben & Jerry's shop will be well-received.

Ben & Jerry's was acquired by London-based consumer products giant Unilever in 2000. Among Unilever's brand names are Calvin Klein, Dove and Lipton.

Ben & Jerry's has about 300 ScoopShops and 15 PartnerShops worldwide. It employs 400 people at its Vermont headquarters.

Amy Simmons, owner of Austin ice cream institution Amy's Ice Creams Inc., says franchised operations find it difficult to tap into what their customers really want. Amy's takes what their customers say seriously, sometimes formulating new flavors from customer input, Simmons says.

"We have the ability to turn around and create a new flavor in two days," Simmons says. "Austin's a very unique market, and we evolve our product by listening to our customers. As for community involvement, we have the freedom to get involved because there are no guidelines."

But the influx of competition doesn't bother Simmons.

"I don't think it [new franchises] hurts local companies," she says. "You just get better at what you do. It sharpens your sword."