If there’s one thing that won’t go amiss for in-store shoppers during the UK heatwave, it’s ice cream.
Which is good news for Ben & Jerry’s, which rolled out its first UK mall kiosk concept at Merry Hill shopping centre in the West Midlands back in April.
The offering consists of a 270 sq ft kiosk based near the shopping centre’s recently renovated M&S store, positioned between Pandora and Beaverbrooks.
The arrival marked Ben & Jerry’s first mid-mall presence in the UK, with the kiosk selling a selection of its ice cream flavours alongside cookie dough chunks, loaded desserts and shakes.
Ice cream from a range of formats
Ben & Jerry’s serves its ice creams from a variety of different store formats across the UK.
The brand currently has six fully branded stores at Tower Hill, Soho, Brighton, Edinburgh, Peterborough and Windsor.
As well as its mall kiosk at Merry Hill, it also trades from kiosks in Rushden Lakes retail park and Fosse Park, with both of these sites based outside.
Additionally, the company has its fully branded Scoop Shops at Thorpe Park, Chessington World of Adventures and Legoland Windsor Resort.
However, Ben & Jerry’s UK head of franchising Chris Braeger explains that the bulk of the chain’s estate is located across Odeon and Vue cinemas.
Regarding its new Merry Hill location, Braeger assures that the site has “exceeded both our and the franchisee’s initial expectations” since its launch.
New store formats “largely depend on the location”
Despite Ben & Jerry’s being involved in a legal dispute with its parent company Magnum Ice Cream Co. (TMICC), the brand continues to perform strongly in the UK.
Earlier this year, Ben & Jerry’s ranked 71st in NIQ’s Britain’s Biggest Brands 2026 list, according to The Grocer.
While TMICC reported a net decline in profits of almost 49 per cent for 2025, and broadly flat revenues year-on-year, there were brighter spots within its regional performance. The business highlighted sales growth of 2.7 per cent in Europe, Australia and New Zealand. This was boosted by a strong UK, France and Spain performance.
Key brands including Magnum, Ben & Jerry’s and Cornetto all contributed to this growth, arguably setting Ben & Jerry’s up well as it looks to expand its physical store presence.
In terms of whether Ben & Jerry’s has plans to launch any new store formats, Braeger says that its formats “largely depend on the location and the operational space”.
“If the location, footfall, and consumer desire align, and we have the right franchisee, we would open anywhere within the UK,” he says.
At the time of its launch, Ben & Jerry’s said its new concept would bring its flavour range to Merry Hill customers in a more accessible, grab-and-go format.
Braeger explains: “We have proof that our external kiosks in shopping centres perform well in fine weather.
“Therefore, we decided to open a kiosk with a shopping centre that’s effectively ‘temperature controlled’ – so conditions for ice cream are consistent.
“We were able to apply learnings from our wider cinema estate, that is less of a seasonal arm of our business but more dependent on other factors such as footfall.”
Given the successful performance of Ben & Jerry’s new Merry Hill site, could there be more UK mall kiosks on the way for the brand?
Braeger explains: “A number of factors have to align to open a new kiosk successfully in the UK, and the Merry Hill opening has shown that there is a case for more kiosks across the UK.”
Of course, Ben & Jerry’s also sells its ice cream in supermarkets
In fact, Ben & Jerry’s was “by far the leading brand of take-home ice cream in convenience stores in the United Kingdom” in 2024 according to Statista.
However, in terms of how important its UK stores remain compared to its supermarket and delivery operations, Braeger assures: “Our stores often recruit new fans into the world of Ben & Jerry’s, and so are a key part of our ice cream ecosystem.
“What’s more, our stores allow us to activate Ben & Jerry’s social mission in local communities.
“All of our franchisee colleagues are invested in our social mission, and dedicate a portion of their work to their local community, whether that be time or financial investment.”
