What's In My Fleet: Unilever Takes a Spot of Tea and Two Scoops

Unilever, the company known for brands including Good Humor, Ben & Jerry’s ice cream, and Lipton teas, recognizes great promotional opportunities.

NAFA Regular Member Oleg Cytowicz, Americas Fleet Lead for Unilever, shared three vehicles that comprise unique and savvy marketing.

The first, an (apparently) vintage Good Humor ice cream truck, isn’t exactly what it seems. “It’s a late-’60s Ford pick-up body mounted on a 2014 Ford frame,” Cytowicz said. “We call it the ‘Transformer’ ice cream truck as it looks like an old-school Good Humor truck that converts into a new-school version.”

The vehicle comes with all the latest technology including flat-screen TVs, a state-of-the-art cooling apparatus built on a rechargeable electric system, and Internet hot-spots, perfect for getting those signal bars when you want to tweet out pictures of a tricked-out ice cream truck.

The “mullet mobile,” as Cytowicz calls it, looks like a perfectly ordinary Tesla, aside from the prominent Ben & Jerry’s logos on the vehicle wraps – all business in the front. However, there’s a party in the back, thanks to a large sliding tray extending from the rear, containing large bins of Vermont’s favorite dessert.

The third vehicle, while not as immediately eye-popping, certainly captures the Lipton tea brand’s overall aesthetic: simple and understated, with a lifetime of reliability. The 1912 Ford Model-T tea truck is, according to Cytowicz, “a company staple and anyone who has been in my building would recognize it!”

A placard next to the vehicle states that it “exemplifies those that plied the streets of America early in (the 20th century), selling Lipton tea to neighborhood grocery stores. It was discovered and originally restored by a retired Lipton sales manager.”

Have unique, odd, or unconventional equipment in your fleet? FLEETSolutions wants to share it with readers and colleagues. Submit your suggested unique fleet vehicles to editorial@nafa.org.