Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams founder to kick off inaugural KU School of Business entrepreneurship event

LAWRENCE — Jeni Britton, founder and chief creative officer of Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams, will speak as part of an inaugural University of Kansas School of Business event celebrating entrepreneurship at 6 p.m. April 25.

The conversation, which will be held in the Dicus Family Auditorium, 1111 Capitol Federal Hall, is free and open to the public, but registration is required. The event will help kick off Startup Jayhawk, a celebration from April 25-27 of the KU student entrepreneurial ecosystem and the communities KU serves.

Britton launched her career as an ice cream maker and entrepreneur with a modern, ingredient-driven style of ice cream making. She opened her first ice cream shop, Scream, in 1996 and founded Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams in 2002, both in Columbus, Ohio. Britton has written two cookbooks: “Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams at Home,” a New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller that also earned a 2012 James Beard Award, and “Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream Desserts,” published in 2014.

In her leadership role, Britton oversees the creative output at Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams. She is a 2017 Henry Crown Fellow and has been recognized by Fast Company as one of the most creative people in business today. Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams is a Certified B Corporation and has more than 65 shops nationwide, an online shop that ships to all 50 states and distribution in select U.S. grocery stores.

Britton will be joined in conversation on April 25 with two School of Business student entrepreneurs, Sae-Vheon Alcorn and Tae-Vheon Alcorn, and will discuss her journey of building her business. Ice cream samples will be available following Britton’s talk.

Other planned Startup Jayhawk activities include a startup and small business networking mixer, a panel discussion about growing ventures from an interest or hobby, a mixer highlighting business resource providers in the region, a reverse pitch competition and a closing lunch to celebrate students who have participated over the spring 2023 semester in The Catalyst, Jayhawk Consulting and RedTire (Redefine your Retirement), which are the school’s entrepreneurship experiential learning programs. The School of Business anticipates hosting Startup Jayhawk events annually to highlight its role as the hub for student entrepreneurs at KU.

More information about KU School of Business entrepreneurship curricular and co-curricular programs, as well as Startup Jayhawk events that are open to KU students and the public, can be found at business.ku.edu/entrepreneurship.