Employee Ownership Blog

Corey Rosen

Bob Moore, Iconic Founder of Bob's Red Mill, Passes Away at Age 94

Bob Moore, the familiar face on the growing line of Bob’s Red Mill products, passed away at age 94. His death received national news coverage, including in the New York Times, USA Today, People, and many others. Moore sold the company to an ESOP in 2010, with the ESOP reaching 100% ownership in 2020. It has grown spectacularly since becoming ESOP-owned, with over 700 employees and over $100 million in sales from 200-plus products in over 70 countries. Many stores have Bob’s Red Mill sections. Along with equally iconic King Arthur Baking, the two 100% ESOP companies have become major players in their markets, with loyal customer bases.

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Lindsay Isaac

This Month's Download: Ownership Rights and Responsibilities

In case you missed it, The Download is a monthly resource designed for members to use to increase education and engagement at their companies. This month’s resource is something that many companies have already adopted (and something that we have heard is a need for many others): ownership rights and responsibilities. 

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Corey Rosen

New Bills to Promote Employee Ownership Introduced in Colorado and Massachusetts

A new bill in Colorado, HB24-1157, would provide statutory authority for the Colorado Employee Ownership Office, which Governor Jared Polis created in 2020 through an executive order. The bill would make the office permanent. The office provides technical assistance, coordinates with other agencies, and conducts outreach. 

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Corey Rosen

What If Amazon Shared Ownership the Way Sears Did?

For those of a certain age (like me), Sears was the Amazon of its day. You could get almost anything but food in a Sears catalogue, and its stores were ubiquitous. My first house in the San Francisco Bay area was built in 1906 with plans from Sears. Early in his life my dad sold shoes for Sears. Back then, Sears put in 10% of pay into a profit-sharing plan that owned Sears stock. Contributions were based on years of service. If a salesman worked for Sears for decades, they could walk away with what would be worth over $1 million today. My dad didn’t stay long, but he sometimes mused about what might have happened. Sears ended the plan in the 1970’s, although it briefly had an ESOP in the 1980s as it was trying to find its way back in a changing retail landscape.

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Corey Rosen

Oxfam Report Recommends Support for Employee Ownership

Oxfam, a nonprofit focusing on hunger and other poverty-rated issues, issued a report that includes a number of recommendations, one of which is “providing financial support to employee-owned businesses, including worker cooperatives. This includes the implementation of ILO [International Labour Organization] Recommendation no.193 on promoting cooperatives and relevant regional instruments.” That recommendation, which is specific to cooperatives, "provides non-binding guidelines in drafting and/or revising national policy and legislation."

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Loren Rodgers

NCEO Board Election Opens January 3

The election for the NCEO’s board of directors opens on January 3 for three-year terms that begin on April 1, 2024. NCEO members in good standing will receive an email on January 3 with the subject line "Invitation to the ballot for the NCEO board elections," which will include a link to a confidential electronic ballot. Directors will be selected through this election and by appointment by the existing board. Balloting will end on January 19.

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