IF THERE’S ONE THING Jeni Britton KNOWS HOW TO DO, IT’S TURN CRAVINGS INTO cult favorites.
After building Jeni's Splendid Ice Cream sinto an ice cream empire with lines around the block, the serial entrepreneur is now taking her obsession with joy, flavor, and feel-good living into the wellness space with Floura, a line of super fiber bars made from upcycled fruit rinds and cores.
Turns out, Britton’s magic touch works just as well in the gut-health aisle as it does in the freezer section. Equal parts creative visionary and wellness realist, she’s focused on building a vibrant, intentional life rooted in health, freedom, and following her own instincts. Whether she’s dreaming up nostalgic flavor combinations, walking through the forest, or redefining what modern wellness can look like, Britton continues to make one thing very clear: the best brands are the ones that actually make people feel good. Read about Jeni Britton’s journey in her C&C 100 interview below.
You’ve accomplished so much since the last time you were featured on the C&C 100 list. What’s been the biggest pivots you’ve made in your business since then?
The first pivot was my own health. I am not a passionate wellness promoter, I don’t stress about perfection, but I did find that simple changes made a massive difference in my life. I walk a few miles daily, and I eat lots of fiber. Those two pivots shifted my physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health drastically. As entrepreneurs and mothers we often don’t take care of ourselves, but now that I know what vibrancy feels like it’s my most precious resource and possession.
In an industry that moves quickly, how have you approached building something with longevity?
I follow my own instinct and I rarely follow trends. Trends often date you – especially now. You have to go your own way – and that’s true for building a brand, or a style or a personal philosophy of life.
What’s a risk you’ve taken in this latest chapter of your career that paid off?
We decided to make our Super Fiber from the rinds and cores of fresh produce instead of using industrial powders or isolates. It’s infinitely more complex, but our fiber bars have more integrity. And we save tons of pounds of high-fiber fruit cores and rinds from the waste stream.
Now we are both an ingredient company and a product company.
What was the biggest mindset shift required to go from where you started to where you are now?
The biggest mindset change was to accept that leadership is first about alignment. If your team is not aligned then there will be friction constantly. Every person on earth would build a different company. I have to build mine.
Alignment is chemistry. When you are not aligned it’s like you’re speaking different languages. Each person on your team should challenge you and bring new thinking to the company. On an aligned team everyone can say what they believe and no one will be offended. There’s trust, shared values, but mostly it's just chemistry. When you have that chemistry you know you can throw the ball without looking and someone will catch it. It’s that magical.
After decades of success with your ice cream brand, where do you find the creativity to dream up new flavors and concepts?
This may sound wild, but flavors are not that creative, actually. Most of us crave what we already know. We often make what we are craving or when we make something new, we are grounded in nostalgia and just add a pop of surprise.
I could make new ice creams every day for the rest of my life and never run out of ideas. Often the best ice creams are about texture or the chemistry of the ingredients more than flavor.
Ultimately we just want to make you really happy. Those ideas are abundant.
The real trick is in the magic of editing. We only have a few places for something new each year. We want to make the most people happy, of course, but not play to the middle. So it’s a mosaic of blockbusters, nostalgic, and something new we are loving.
What is something you will not sacrifice in the name of success? Have you ever had to turn down opportunities to stay aligned with your values?
I will never sacrifice my health by trying to please too many people again. I will always protect my health first. And, yes, we turn down far more opportunities than we accept.
What does success look like to you right now versus when you first started?
At first success was about safety. I was running toward a life that was sustainable. I gave every second of every day to that effort. Success for me now is simply about freedom. Success affords the freedom to decide what I do with my time. I just want to hang out with my family and my Floura team, and walk in the forest.
What’s something you would do more of if you had the time?
Walk in the forest and eat more blueberries.
Rapid fire POP QUIZ:
The first thing I do when I wake up in the morning is:
Make a flat white in a footed glass. Or, better yet, drink one that my partner Jamie made for me.
If I had one more hour in the day, I would:
Walk in the forest.
A song that describes the era I’m in right now is:
”The Wind” by Cat Stevens
My current obsession is:
My uniform: v-neck cropped tee-shirt (perfect white tee), jeans (Levi’s), small black sneaker (keds champion). I want to go back to the era where entrepreneurs were feral and they looked like scrappers, not finance people.
Three words to describe the legacy I want to leave behind:
Imagination is freedom