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🛩️ EOX ON THE MOVE

From Phoenix to St. Louis, Chicago, Raleigh, and the Nation's Capital
September has taken EOX to some great places to share the good news about EMPLOYEE OWNERSHIP.

Over a few short weeks, the EOX team joined six gatherings spanning five cities. We saw our partners from the NCEO, The Great Game of Business, EO Equals, B-Labs, ESCA, and the North Carolina Center. We talked open-book management, coalesced around storytelling initiatives, shared insights with mission-driven businesses, sponsored events for the State Center Network, and explored federal ESOP policy. Our new Director of Outreach & Business Development, Romondo McEachern, hit the ground running right alongside us.

The miles were many. But more important was who we met along the way, and how those relationships can help more business owners find their way to employee ownership through the State Center Network.

With Employee Ownership Month just ahead, the timing was right to build some serious momentum for the EO movement.

See where EOX went in September...and why each stop mattered!

NEWS ACROSS THE EOX NETWORK

SPOTLIGHT: The North Carolina Employee Ownership Center (NCEOC) hosts their first annual EO conference on the heels of a major announcement in Durham.

Just days after launching Keep it Durham-Owned, a yearlong initiative with the Democracy at Work Institute that gives local business owners free, confidential guidance as they consider succession, the NCEOC welcomed roughly 115 attendees to its first-ever statewide employee ownership conference. The gathering brought together business owners, advisors, employee-owned companies, municipalities, and fellow State Centers for a strong first showing. These partnerships and events are clear signs of how quickly NCEOC’s work is expanding across the state.

WATCH DURHAM ANNOUNCEMENT →

EOX Partner Spotlight: SCJ Fiduciary Services — longtime supporter and National Service Provider for EOX — launches SCJ Trust Company, investing in the people, capabilities, and long-term continuity needed to serve ESOP clients for generations. CONGRATULATIONS to the entire SCJ team for reaching this incredible milestone! It is no small feat to turn an individual ESOP trustee business into a trust company, and your hard work will pay off for years to come.
WATCH HERE →

ALCEO TODAY! There is still time to register for ALCEO's Deeper Dive Webinar, co-hosted with Project Equity →

GACEO WATCH MARIE DAVIS announce to FIELDS employees that they are now 100% employee-owned as GACEO welcomes them to the EO family in GA →

FLCEO welcomes Alyssa Duany as their new Executive Director →

IACEO welcomes their new student worker, Ruby Timp, bringing fresh ideas, energy, and perspective to the IACEO's work →

MICEO welcomes the second business to become employee-owned through their technical assistance program—Lansing-based DBI →

MOCEO welcomes Mama Jean's Natural Foods Market, LLC to the growing EO community in MO after becoming 100% employee-owned →

NDCEO founding Board Member, Tammy Miller, presents at TEDx Fargo why the "American Dream Needs More Owners" →

OEOC releases the latest episode of their OWNERS AT WORK Podcast, featuring CoRise Capital →

RMEOC is still accepting vendor applications for their October 11th People's Festival →

VEOC seeks to grow their team with new Communications and Program Coordinator position. Apply today, or share with someone who might be a good fit →

WACEO to be featured on October 2nd webinar with People's Economy Lab. REGISTER →

WICEO welcomes Ellis Construction to the EO community in WI as they become 100% employee-owned →

SHOW YOUR SUPPORT

Subscribe to Stakehold while supporting EOX — Thanks to the generosity of EOX supporter GO ESOP LLC, every new subscriber to The Stakehold weekly newsletter means a donation towards EOX's mission of expanding employee ownership.

The Stakehold is quickly becoming a go-to source for weekly news, ideas, resources, policy updates, and developments across the EO landscape. We’re grateful to GO ESOP LLC and The Stakehold for a partnership rooted in a shared goal of reaching more businesses, employees, and communities with employee ownership. To SUBSCRIBE, simply click the button below and complete the short form.

POLICY CORNER

TRENTON, NJ - Gov Mikie Sherrill signs law to expand employee ownership in NJ

SB 4218/Assembly Bill 5016 will assist business owners with succession planning while keeping companies, jobs, and wealth in the state, expanding existing programs to include financial and technical assistance for businesses considering EO. Major kudos to longtime EOX partner, Lafayette Square, for their work on this legislation.
READ HERE →

UPCOMING EVENTS

🗓️ Check out the EOX Events Calendar!

CONFERENCE — IACEO Annual Employee Ownership Conference

hosted by the Iowa Center for Employee Ownership (IACEO)

October 01, 2026 | Ankeny, IA

REGISTER →

CONFERENCE — NCEO Women's Summit

hosted by the National Center for Employee Ownership

October 7-8, 2026 | Detroit, MI

*Use code Join50 for $50 off regular prices at checkout!

REGISTER →

EO CELEBRATION — The People's Festival

hosted by the Rocky Mountain Employee Ownership Center (RMEOC)

October 11, 2026 | Denver, CO

REGISTER →

EO CELEBRATION — Celebrating EO in Wisconsin

hosted by the Wisconsin Center for Employee Ownership (WICEO)

October 22, 2026 | Madison, WI

REGISTER →

EO CELEBRATION — Celebrating EO in Georgia

hosted by the Georgia Center for Employee Ownership (GACEO)

October 27, 2026 | Atlanta, GA

REGISTER →

EO IN THE NEWS

2026 Stout ESOP Index Reports 18.1% One-Year Return as ESOP Companies Outpace the S&P 500 — Second annual study reports an 18.0% five-year annualized return and expands industry analysis with new classifications and deeper sector insights.
READ HERE →

Rutgers Study Finds Employee Ownership Delivers Stronger Financial Security for Workers Without Four-Year College Degrees — Yahoo! Finance: New research from the Rutgers Institute for the Study of Employee Ownership and Profit Sharing, on behalf of ESCA, finds that workers without a bachelor's degree have higher earnings in jobs with an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) than in non-ESOP jobs. They also report higher household wealth and greater access to employer-provided benefits.
READ HERE →

FOLLOW US ON LinkedIn!
Keep in touch with our upcoming travels. Who knows, you might even get tagged in a post when we cross paths.

Help us reach our goal of increasing our LinkedIn following by 40%.
FOLLOW US →

Or even better...encourage your followers to follow us! Because who DOESN'T need to know about employee ownership?

EO RESOURCES

📊 REPORT: Powering 10 Million Small Businesses: Four Opportunities to Strengthen America's Small Business Ecosystem
— Authored by JPMorganChase — longtime supporter and National Service provider for EOX — this report → outlines a federal policy agenda for creating a stronger operating environment for entrepreneurs.
READ STORY →

📄 PAPER: How Proceeds from ESOP Sales Compare to Those from Other Buyers— Co-authored by NCEO co-founder Corey Rosen, and by Regina Carls and Eric Zaiman of JPMorganChase, this paper provides insights as to "Why Selling to an ESOP Often Provides the Highest Financial Benefits."
READ HERE →

SUPPORT EOX

Want to get more involved in a State Center near you or at the national level? Please email Steve Storkan at sstorkan@eoxnetwork.org.

If you're interested in donating to support our work to expand employee ownership across the United States, please click the button below to make a tax-deductible gift to the Employee Ownership Expansion Network!

EOX EIN: 83-2849677

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