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A 25-year-old Adelaide nurse who spent years caring for people in their final days is now chasing the dream he says he did not want to leave too late.
Jai Singh, who has worked in palliative and aged care in Adelaide for the past three-and-a-half years, is preparing to open a brand-new Ben & Jerry’s Scoop Shop in the heart of the city, bringing famous ice cream, late-night dessert runs and a deeply personal story to Hindley Street.
The new store will open at Shop 3, 62 Hindley Street, Adelaide, on Tuesday 5 May, coinciding with Ben & Jerry’s Free Cone Day. To celebrate, Jai will be giving away free ice cream from 12pm to 8pm.
For Jai, the leap into business has been shaped by the people he has cared for.
“I’ve worked in palliative care for about three-and-a-half years,” Jai said. “You are there at the end part of someone’s life, and you try to make it beautiful and pain-free. You want to make sure the family is okay, and that they remember their loved one was peaceful and rested.”
After years of hearing people reflect on the chances they wished they had taken, Jai says he didn’t want to wait until later to chase his own.
“I was on a night shift and I asked myself, ‘Jai, do you want to do this your whole life?’ I loved what I did, but I could feel myself getting burnt out. I thought it was time for the next phase of my life,” he said.
That next phase led him back to a childhood love of ice cream.
“When I was young, my parents used to take me to the ice cream parlour, and somehow that stayed with me,” Jai said. “I love food, I love ice cream, and I wanted to spread joy.”
After arriving in Australia from India with “only $1000” in his pocket, Jai studied nursing in Sydney before a contract brought him to South Australia. He quickly fell in love with Adelaide and decided to stay.
“I came here, and I loved the city,” he said. “Adelaide has that small, lovely, country kind of feel. I just fell in love and didn’t want to go back to Sydney.”
At just 25, Jai says he will be one of the youngest Ben & Jerry’s owners in the world, but the milestone has come with an enormous personal leap. After years of 16-hour days and saving everything he could, he says he has poured himself completely into the Hindley Street store.
“I’ve put every single penny into this,” Jai said. “I’m all in, but I believe in the brand and I love what they do.”
Alongside classic Ben & Jerry’s scoops, the store will feature exclusive Scoop Shop flavours, vegan-friendly options and a unique hot chocolate made using Chocolate Fudge Brownie ice cream.
Jai says the brand’s values were a huge part of why he chose Ben & Jerry’s. “They are all about social values, culture, they stand for everyone,” Jai said.
It’s a strong sense of care and hard work that have led Jai to this stage of his career, but passion is the cherry on top for his new ice creamery.
The new Ben & Jerry’s Scoop Shop opens at Shop 3, 62 Hindley Street, Adelaide, on Tuesday 5 May 2026, with free scoops available from 12pm to 8pm.
Ben & Jerry’s Scoop Shop
Where: Shop 3, 62 Hindley Street, Adelaide
When: Set to open Tuesday 5 May
For more info, click here.
