Yeah that's Jerry giving me a scoop of Ben & Jerry's Salted Caramel Ice-cream.
This was one of the most impactful stories I heard of triumph in business one year ago, I was sitting in Carnegie Hall listening to Jerry Greenfield, Co-Founder of Ben & Jerry’s, share their David vs Goliath story. Back in the 80’s they were 2 broke kids starting an ice-cream business. Their small local business began to grow and they started to branch out into distribution. They found 1 distributor for their product but then Pillsbury, who owned Haagen Dazs, attempted to cripple their burgeoning business by monopolizing the market for ice-cream distribution.
With no money and little resources, they launched a grassroots campaign to fight back against their tyranny. Jerry’s first attempt was passionate, but not effective: he went to the Pillsbury headquarters by himself with a 1-man picket line and his placard, “What’s the Doughboy Afraid of?” The lesson was, they were innovators, not quitters. They eventually launched a campaign directly to their customers, the ones who wanted their product, to help them save Ben & Jerry’s.
There were so many lessons in this but my 2 biggest were.1. Don’t be afraid to innovate. There are always companies bigger than you with more resources, but when you are agile like David, you can beat Goliath. And, of course, 2. LISTEN TO YOUR CUSTOMERS!!! If your customers are asking for it, your customers will fight for you. I firmly believe there are people you are put here on this earth to serve, and you have a responsibility to step up and serve them despite the competition. Customers of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream were not Haagen Dazs ice cream lovers, so no matter how much Pillsbury tried to stop Ben & Jerry, they were NEVER going to get their customers.
My question is, who is the Pillsbury in your life? If you are in business, growing and adding services, get ready, because Pillsbury will show up in your life to try to snuff you out. Take a page from Ben & Jerry’s and ask, “What’s the Doughboy Afraid of?” Then get to work!
#davidvsgoliath #whatsthedoughboyafraidof #AudaciousConfidence #benandjerrys
