Middleton, Wisconsin-based ETC (Electronic Theatre Controls) recently sold one-third of the company to its employees via an ESOP with the assistance of ESOP Partners. The sale has received strong media coverage from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, the Wisconsin State Journal, and In Business Madison.
The media interest is in part due to the growing popularity of ESOPs. Following is an excerpt from the Journal Sentinel article for which ESOP Partners President Aaron Juckett was interviewed:
"There are about 6,800 ESOPs in the U.S., with about 200 in Wisconsin, said Aaron Juckett, president and founder of ESOP Partners, an Appleton firm that helped ETC's owners with their plan. The average Wisconsin ESOP company has been in place for 19 years and is 66% employee-owned, he said.
ETC approached Juckett about the possibility of doing an ESOP after evaluating many alternatives, he said. To do an ESOP, a company has to be doing well and have enough financial resources, Juckett said."
ESOP Partners continues to work with ETC as the company’s ESOP consultant and third-party administrator.