Ben & Jerry’s to close Downtown shop Saturday
Owner chose to use resources for other clients
Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream Shop in Pittsburgh’s Cultural District will stop scooping cones at the end of this week.
The Downtown store at 936 Penn Ave. is closing its doors on Saturday because its local franchise owner, nonprofit Life’sWork of Western PA, has decided to spend more resources on job placement for its clients rather than the costs of managing the retail shop.
Life’sWork opened the franchise in 2001 as part of Ben & Jerry’s PartnerShop Training Program through which nonprofits provide jobs and training as part of their mission. It was originally located on Forbes Avenue in Squirrel Hill before moving Downtown.
The shop has three part-time workers and also is a training site for Life’sWork clients.
The Uptown agency offers programs and training for people with disabilities and other barriers to work.
“It’s a bittersweet decision,” said Timothy Parks, president and chief executive of Life’sWork.
“While we have had a long and
very positive experience with the shop as a unique training venue for youth, the financial realities of operating a commercial enterprise such as this preclude our continued investment.”
“We’ve been looking really hard at the strategic direction of the agency and where to rationalize some investment,” he said.
The nonprofit said Ben & Jerry’s corporate management is interested in opening the store with a new owner and manager.
“They’d like to keep a franchise going in [the Pittsburgh region],” said Mr. Parks. “And we’d be very much about placing some of our youth with a new franchise.”
The ice cream company was founded as a single shop in 1978 in Burlington, Vt., and soon after began franchising its stores nationwide. It was acquired by Unilever in 2000.
Throughout Life’sWork’s run operating the store, “Ben & Jerry’s has been super and very supportive,” said Mr. Parks. “And they recognize the challenge of us continuing.”