Reframing Ownership
A six-part series celebrating employee ownership and the emergence of a new ownership economy
1: Recruit and retain employees | The Local Butcher Shop ↓
2: Reward those who built the business | Proof Bakery ↓
3: Retire and protect your unique legacy| Alternative Technologies ↓
4: Foster a culture of ownership| Atthowe Fine Art Services ↓
In early 2022, Project Equity launched Reframing Ownership, a six-part series celebrating employee ownership and the emergence of a new ownership economy.
In this series, we looked at employee-owned companies that are part of a growing movement to redefine ownership as a plan to help U.S. businesses recover from the pandemic.
Carving out a slice of ownership: The Local Butcher Shop
First up, meet The Local Butcher Shop, which embodies a key benefit of employee ownership: increased employee engagement.
“We created a really good crew that is responsible and really loves and enjoys what they do—and has just as much respect for the products as we do.” Aaron Rocchino, former owner of The Local Butcher Shop.
For the good of the whole (wheat): Proof Bakery
The pandemic has taught us how many jobs we rely on as part of our everyday lives. Bakeries and other food service industries are emerging from the pandemic thinking about new ways to take care of the employees who have helped grow the business.
Na Young Ma, Proof Bakery founder, had a vision from the start that involved everyone in the business. Employee ownership rewards many of those employees, taking care of those who helped build the business.
REFRAMING OWNERSHIP: PART THREE
Employee ownership allows you to retire and protect your unique legacy
When the golden rule becomes your legacy: Alternative Technologies
The legacy that Alternative Technologies has had from the beginning is one where the golden rule prevailed. Now, they are an employee-owned company, where owner Jerry Skomer leveraged employee ownership as a means to retire.
“We held an all-staff meeting where I gave a speech about parallel computing,” Skomer reminisced. “The idea is that a computer with a bunch of processing units works better than a single processing unit. That’s the definition of employee ownership.”
Securing a cultural legacy: Atthowe Fine Art Services
Transitioning to employee ownership is a lot like handling fine art. Working with Scott Atthowe and his entire team at Atthowe Fine Art Services, Project Equity guided this specialized logistics and shipping company through a transition that maintained the culture of the business while ensuring its legacy.
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Learn more
about employee ownership transitions
Discover
how others did it
Sign up
for a free consultation
San Francisco Chronicle
Worker-owned Bay Area food businesses are on the rise. Is it a turning point for the industry?
The Mercury News
Project Equity’s op-ed: COVID pandemic has shown the value of employee ownership
The EO Podcast
Our latest articles
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Project Equity has partnered directly with SBDCs and regional networks to provide consultation and employee ownership feasibility assessment advising services to their SBDC clients…
Tom James Company
Tom James Company is the largest custom clothing firm in the world. And it is proud to be 100% employee-owned.
Delta Pipeline, Inc.
Project Equity had a chance to connect with Craig Danley, President and CEO of Delta Pipeline, Inc., a successful ESOP in Long Beach, CA. Read full story >>
Quaintance-Weaver Restaurants and Hotels
Project Equity interviewed Dennis Quaintance, Co-founder of ESOP Quaintance-Weaver. Read full story >>
Coming back strong
How one hospitality company’s employee ownership values helped them survive during the COVID pandemic
