ESOP Partners to Sponsor and Speak at the Wisconsin Chapter 2023 Spring Conference & Roundtables

ESOP Partners will be sponsoring and speaking at the Wisconsin Chapter 2023 Spring Conference & Roundtables, being held March 9-10, 2023, at Kalahari Resort Dells in Wisconsin Dells, WI.

ESOP Partners a Sponsor of Employee Owned 2022

ESOP Partners a Sponsor of the 2022 NCEO Fall Forum

ESOP Partners is proud to be a  sponsor of the NCEO Fall Forum in St. Louis, MO on September 26th-28th. 

ESOP Partners a Platinum Sponsor at 2022 Midwest Regional Conference

ESOP Partners is proud to be a Platinum Sponsor and speaker at the Midwest Regional Conference on September 20-22, 2022 in Milwaukee. 

Economic Group Pension Services (EGPS) Appoints ESOP Partners to Manage Client ESOP Plan Administration

ESOP Partners is excited to announce a new partnership with Economic Group Pension Services (EGPS), serving as their ESOP subject matter expert. In this arrangement, ESOP Partners will provide administration and consulting on all things ESOP to EGPS clients.. This approach allows EGPS to focus on its core areas of expertise and provide its clients with a best-in-class service provider for all their qualified retirement plans. “ESOP Partners is a great service provider choice for clients desiring this plan type. We’re excited to partner with them, as their values and service standards align with ours, and they provide exemplary retirement plan consulting to their clients,” stated Dawn Genz, Chief Operating Officer for EGPS.

ESOP Partners focuses solely on ESOPs and does not compete in the 401(k) administration marketplace. This allows them to provide industry-leading ESOP expertise and consulting services, while also allowing their clients to implement an unbundled approach and select a premium service provider for both their ESOP and 401(k) plans. By implementing this model, clients receive greater service provider accountability. This also allows ESOP companies to regularly evaluate and change service providers, manage plan expenses with fee transparency, and otherwise satisfy their plan sponsor and trustee fiduciary responsibilities.

ESOP Partners Announces New Managing Director

ESOP Partners is pleased to announce that Joseph “Joe” Fonti has joined the team of employee-owners in the role of Managing Director. 

As a member of the senior leadership team, 
Joe will focus on executing on the strategic goals of the organization. He is responsible for overseeing the daily operations. He will work on enhancing the already strong employee and client experience. He is working as an integrator of ideas to enhance organizational efficiency, promote ESOPs to the business community, to help facilitate the growth of the ESOP communications and ownership culture d
evelopment services and to provide advice to existing clients on methods to enhance enterprise value. 

 "We are excited to have Joe join the leadership team due to his extensive business experience, his passion for creating ESOP millionaires and his ability to relate to ESOP clients since his business became an ESOP," says Aaron Juckett, ESOP Partners President and Founder. 

Joe is an experienced executive leader and owner of several businesses. He is a licensed attorney and has served as the chief operating officer of a 15-location furniture company with nearly 600 employees. His furniture company became an ESOP in 2018 and ESOP Partners has provided to his furniture business administrative services, educational and cultural training and repurchase obligation analysis. ESOPs are his passion and he joined ESOP Partners because it is a best-in-class ESOP provider and because he is committed to creating ESOP millionaires at ESOP Partners and at existing and future ESOP clients. 

ESOP Partners a Sponsor, Exhibitor and Speaker at NCEO 2022 Employee Ownership Conference

ESOP Partners is proud to be a Sponsor,  Exhibitor and Speaker at NCEO's 2022 Employee Ownership Conference being held April 26-28 at the Washington State Convention Center in Seattle, WA. 



ESOP Partners an Annual Leader Sponsor of the Wisconsin Chapter of The ESOP Association’s Spring Conference

The Wisconsin Chapter of The ESOP Association is hosting this Spring in-person event to engage Chapter members with an educational and networking opportunity.  The programming features several highlights on Culture/Communications as well as Governance/Management topics. 

ESOP Partners is pleased to be an Annual Leader sponsor for this event. 

Columbus Chemical Industries, Inc. Completes Sale to Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP)

Company Now 100% Employee Owned

After nearly 44 years in business, Columbus Chemical Industries (CCI) has transitioned to a 100% ESOP
(Employee Stock Ownership Plan) owned company. In an announcement made on January 27, 2022, company
founder, Richard Sheard outlined how important it was that the CCI employees who helped grow a strong, prosperous company should share in its ownership into the future.

In the announcement meeting, after expressing his gratitude for efforts by the CCI team, but before telling
employees that the company was sold to the ESOP, Richard stated along with the other Shareholders he had
sold the company. After a pause, he then went on to unveil that the new owners were the employees, to which there was applause and amazement.

Thanking Richard and the shareholders for making such a wonderful decision to benefit the long-term future of CCI and all its associates, President Randall Eppli indicated Richard’s legacy of serving customers and
honoring CCI associates will carry on through an employee-owned company.

About CCI

With facilities in Wisconsin and Arizona and distributor partners reaching global customers, CCI is a specialty chemical company providing custom engineered solutions for the semiconductor, medical device, biotech, laboratory, and industrial manufacturing industries. The CCI team is proud of the recognition regularly received for employee safety, outstanding service, environmentally conscious practices, and active community involvement.

About ESOP Partners

ESOP Partners is an ESOP service provider that changes lives by creating wealth and sustainable employment through employee ownership and works with business owners and companies to determine if an ESOP is a good fit for their situation. ESOP Partners establishes, maintains, and sustains employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs) throughout the lifecycle to maximize the benefits of being an ESOP company and provide employees with an ownership stake in the company that they work for.

 About ESOPs

Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs) are qualified retirement plans that buy, hold, and sell company stock for the benefit of the employees, providing an ownership stake in the company. ESOPs are the only retirement plan allowed to borrow money to purchase stock and are generally funded only by the company. Selling part or all of a business to an ESOP enables a business owner to sell to a built-in buyer in as little as 90 days at full fair market value. There are many significant tax and cash flow benefits of selling to an ESOP. An ESOP also allows for a better-managed ownership transition, preservation of local jobs, and the maintenance of a company’s legacy in the community. According to the National Center for Employee Ownership (NCEO), there are approximately 10,000 ESOPs in place in the U.S., covering 10.3 million employees. There are less than 2,500 ESOP companies that are 100% owned by their employees. 

Read the press release here. 

ESOP Partners to Attend and Sponsor the Las Vegas ESOP Association Conference & Trade Show (EO21)

ESOP Partners will be attending and sponsoring the Las Vegas ESOP Conference & Trade Show EO21  November 10-12, 2021  at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, NV.