Business conversions to employee ownership
Case studies: Owner-Retires or Owner-Stays
Rockman et al
Industry: Research Firm
Location: San Francisco, CA
Converted: Aug 2019
Employees: 14
Read case study & view video >>
Happy Earth
Industry: Cleaning Service
Location: Minneapolis, MN
Converted: Dec 2019
Employees: 19
Read case study & view video >>
Niles Pie
Industry: Bakery
Location: Union City, CA
Converted: July 2017
Employees: 8
Read case study & view video >>
A Slice of New York
Industry: Restaurant
Location: San Jose, CA
Converted: July 2017
Employees: 33
View video >>
Urban Ore
Industry: Retail Resale Store
Location: Berkeley, CA
Converted: In progress
Employees: 38
Listen to the NPR Marketplace report >>
Arbor Assays
Industry: Biomolecular Research
Location: Ann Arbor, MI
Converted: January 2017
Employees: 11
Read case study & view video >>
Select Machine
Industry: Machinery Manufacturing
Location: Ohio
Converted: 2006
Employees: 13
Read case study >>
Island Employee Cooperative
Industry: Convenience & Hardware Store
Location: Maine
Converted: 2014
Employees: 60
Read case study >>
Real Pickles
Industry: Packaged Food
Location: Massachusetts
Converted: 2014
Employees: 10
Read case study >>
Pattycake Bakery
Industry: Restaurant
Location: Ohio
Converted: 2014
Employees: 10
Read case study >>
Namaste Solar
Industry: Solar
Location: Colorado, California, New York
Converted: 2011
Employees: 73
Read case study and view videos >>
Big Timberworks
Industry: Construction
Location: Montana
Converted: 1999
Employees: 11
Read case study >>
Financing
A Yard and a Half Landscaping deal structure
Industry: Landscaping
Location: Massachusetts
Year converted: 2013
Total capital: $635,000
Annual revenue at sale date: $2M
Worker-owner buy-in: $7,000
Worker-owners: 20
Read financial study >>
New Era Windows deal structure
Industry: Manufacturing
Location: Chicago, IL
Year converted: 2013
Total capital: $850,000
Annual revenue at sale date: $0
Worker-owner buy-in: $1,000
Worker-owners: 16 (20 employees)
Read financial study >>
Island Employee Cooperative deal structure
Industry: Grocery/Retail Variety
Location: Maine
Year converted: 2014
Total capital: $5,600,000
Annual revenue at sale date: $12M
Worker-owner buy-in: $7,000
Worker-owners: 45 (62 employees)
Read financial study >>
Real Pickles deal structure
Industry: Food Manufacturing
Location: Massachusetts
Year converted: 2013
Total capital: $749,000
Annual revenue at sale date: $581,000
Worker-owner buy-in: $6,000
Worker-owners: 5
Read financial study >>
New School of Montpelier deal structure
Industry: Education
Location: Vermont
Year converted: 2015
Annual revenue at sale date: $2M
Purchase price: $200,000
Worker-owner buy-in: $500
Worker-owners: 38
Read financial study >>
Interviews & stories
Recology: Safeguarding employee-owners and the community during COVID-19
May 1, 2020—Project Equity reached out to Julie Bertani-Kiser, Senior Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer at Recology, to find out how their ESOP company was responding to the health crisis. Recology is based in San Francisco, and provides waste and...
Adams and Chittenden Scientific Glass: Mo’s Story
Adams and Chittenden Scientific Glass, in Berkeley, CA, is world renowned for manufacturing laboratory glassware. The co-founders brought in Project Equity to assist with the transition of company ownership to their employees. Mo is preparing to become one of the new owners. Read full story >>
Niles Pie: Sarah Vegas’ Story
This is an interview with a worker-owner, Sarah Vegas, who is a single parent to 11-year-old Attison. Due to the irregular hours and pay in her previous restaurant jobs, Sarah struggled to provide and be present for Attison in the way she wanted to be. Learn how becoming an owner changed her life. Read full story >>
Toto’s story
I’m Toto. I started working at Niles Pie in May 2015. I was hired to work at the farmers’ markets after my contract was over as a data analyst for the IRS. Now that I’m an owner, I’m looking at the job and business from a very different perspective. Read full story >>
Ren’s story
I thought it was going to be really difficult to establish employee ownership, but Hilary and Patty really taught us so much through the whole process. They broke it down and showed us that it was up to us to decide what guidelines would work for us. Read full story >>
The Cheese Board Collective: Martha’s story
Martha is enjoying her East Bay life, two grown kids flourishing on the East Coast, a good running practice, a vegetable garden, backyard hens and over 20 years of baking with the Arizmendi Association. Read full story >>
Prospera: Lupita’s story
Lupita and her husband arrived in the US as newlyweds with the hope of a better life and dreams of building a home for their young family. Lupita began working at an orange packing facility, but the earnings were not stable and she wasn’t able to support her family. Read full story >>
California Solar: Lars’s Story
This is a blind ballot, so please be completely honest, either way this decision affects us all. Pleases take this home and discuss it with your family. Typed at the top of a simple questionnaire, this is how one weekend in January 2016 began. Read full story >>
Collective Copies
Industry: Printing Service
Location: Western Massachusetts
Converted: 2015
Employees: 11
Read case study >>
Centerpoint Counseling
Industry: Mental Health Care
Location: Wisconsin
Converted: 2014
Employees: 14
Read case study >>
Explore by region
| Title | Address | Description |
|---|---|---|
Big Timberworks | 435 E Main St, Bozeman, MT 59715, USA | Bozeman, Montana Read case study… |
Centerpoint Counseling | 210 Airport Rd #103, Viroqua, WI 54665, USA | Viroqua, Wisconsin Read case study… |
Island Employee Cooperative | 1 Burnt Cove Rd, Stonington, ME 04681, USA | Deer Isle, Stonington, Maine Read case study… Read financial study… |
New Era Windows | 2600 W 35th St #127, Chicago, IL 60632, USA | Chicago, IL Read financial study….. |
Collective Copies | 93 Main St #1, Florence, MA 01062, USA | Northampton, Massachusetts Read case study… |
Real Pickles | 311 Wells St, Greenfield, MA 01301, USA |  Greenfield, MassachusettsRead case study… Read financial study… |
Namaste Solar | 4571 Broadway, Boulder, CO 80304, USA |  Boulder, CO with additional regional locations in NY, CA and CORead case study… View video interviews… |
Niles Pie | 32990 Alvarado-Niles Rd #960, Union City, CA 94587, USA |  Union City, CAView video & read media coverage… |
A Slice of New York | 3443 Stevens Creek Blvd, San Jose, CA 95050, USA |  San Jose, CA with a 2nd location in Sunnyvale, CAView video and read case study… |
Urban Ore | 900 Murray St, Berkeley, CA 94710, USA |  Berkeley, CAListen to NPR Marketplace report and read media coverage… |
Select Machine | 4125 Karg Industrial Pkwy, Kent, OH 44240, USA | Kent, OH Read case study… |
Pattycake Bakery | 3009 N High St, Columbus, OH 43202, USA |  Columbus, OHRead case study… |
A Yard and a Half Landscaping | 26 Thayer Rd, Belmont, MA 02478, USA |  Belmont, MARead case study… |
New School of Montpelier | 11 West St, Montpelier, VT 05602, USA | Montpelier, VT Read case study… |
The Cheeseboard Collective | 1512 Shattuck Ave, Berkeley, CA 94709, USA |  Berkeley, CARead case study… |
Prospera | 1470 Fruitvale Ave #1, Oakland, CA 94601, USA |  Oakland, CARead case study… |
California Solar | 149 E Main St, Grass Valley, CA 95945, USA |
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Arbor Assays | 1514 Eisenhower Pl, Ann Arbor, MI 48108, USA |  Ann Arbor, MI Read case study… |
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