In 1980 Kevin walked out of his accountancy studies to cut hair. Three years later he opened his first salon in Southend with five chairs and a £1,000 decorating budget. This April, 43 years on, he handed the whole business to his team. novo hair is now 100% employee owned through a UK Employee Ownership Trust, 15 people, all partners.Kevin walks Andy through the three trade sales that fell over, why he could not stomach three years of being hated by his own staff, how he landed on a number and then deliberately took the bottom of the valuation range, and the grand announcement that landed to fifteen completely blank faces. Five months in, he shares what has actually changed: the bonus pot the team controls, the financials they now lean into, and the tumble dryer filter that suddenly matters.Key takeaways✅ A trade sale is not the only number. Salons typically fetch one to one and a half times earnings, and every offer Kevin received came with three to five years of him staying put.💡 Leaving something on the table can be the point. Kevin took the bottom of the valuation range so the business could carry the debt and still pay the team an annual bonus from year one.🌟 Do not save the announcement for a big reveal. Fifteen people who have never heard of an EOT cannot get excited in the two minutes before you explain it.✅ Give the team a quick win they control. Retail profit and in-salon treatments go straight into a bonus pot, so ownership shows up in this month's numbers, not year five.💡 Ownership changes how the financials land. The same numbers that used to glaze people over now get real attention, because the net profit is theirs.🎧 Get your ducks in a row first. If the business cannot run without you for a month, it is not ready to be handed over.Notable quotes"The old adage is if it feels too good to be true, it's too good to be true. I very much feel with the EOT it feels too good to be true, but it is true.""I can be hated to a degree, but I can't be hated for three years and be there every day.""That won't save me a hundred and twenty pound. It will save you a hundred and twenty pound."LinksKevin Franks on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-franks-208b4aa/novo hair: https://novohair.co.ukGo EO (Chris Maslin), who valued the business: https://goeo.ukChris Maslin on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-maslin-9a5a2316/Richer Sounds, the EOT Kevin learned from: https://www.richersounds.comHost, Andy Farquharson: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andyfarquharson/a better monday: https://abettermonday.me
Our first ever double episode. 🎧Andy sits down with both founders of Monarch Investment Partners to explore the question at the heart of employee ownership: who should own your business next?Katie and Michael unpack why external capital has been the missing piece in scaling employee ownership, how ESOPs create genuine alignment of incentives, and why returns and purpose belong on a level playing field. A candid, practical listen for any owner weighing their exit. 🌟Chapters00:00 — The double episode format 04:00 — Bridging employee ownership and external capital 05:18 — Why the "benevolent seller" model needs capital to scale 06:57 — Monarch's focus: 100% employee-owned ESOP transitions 08:04 — How ESOPs create alignment of incentives 09:53 — Turning open-book data into ownership behaviour 12:38 — Underwriting and the buy box 14:16 — Diligence on the management team 18:36 — How Monarch differs from the wider field 21:27 — The buy box: $5–15m EBITDA, US, industry agnostic 23:48 — Post-transaction support and Michael's book 27:16 — Measuring success: the double bottom line 30:13 — Rapid fire questions 36:06 — The monarch butterfly effectKey Takeaways✅ Capital, not appetite, is the biggest barrier to scaling employee ownership. ✅ ESOPs align incentives, but that only compounds through repeated communication, typically from year three. ✅ People manage their behaviour to the data they are given. Open-book transparency turns employees into owners. ✅ Returns and purpose can sit on a level playing field. Impact and competitive returns aren't a trade-off.Notable Quotes💡 "Who do you want to own your business? It may very well not be a private equity firm." — Michael McGinley💡 "We're not trying to sacrifice returns for impact. We want to prove both can coexist." — Katie KimballLinksMonarch Investment Partners: https://www.monarchinvestmentpartners.com/ Michael McGinley on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaeljmcginley/ Katie Kimball on LinkedIn: [add — see note below] Monarch Performance Disclosure: https://mcusercontent.com/3bef2e9f4d6f9832d50e71e3e/files/cd67868e-0f83-8cbb-9a4e-015bf2da300a/Monarch_Performance_Disclosure.pdf Host: Andy Farquharson — https://www.linkedin.com/in/andyfarquharson/ a better monday: https://abettermonday.meDisclosure: Any performance figures referenced are subject to Monarch's full performance disclosure, linked above.
Bob Whalen walked into a 94-year-old, third-generation family business in 2008 and, within two years, transitioned it to a 100% ESOP. What started as a way to make the deal more tax-efficient became his professional purpose. Fifteen years on, HB Global has grown almost 10x, completed close to 20 acquisitions, and built over $110M of value sitting inside its employee owners' accounts. In this episode, Bob shares why he runs the business like a sports team rather than a family, how he protects culture through every acquisition, and why the person who "gave away" the most is the happiest about it. A genuinely different take on ownership, legacy and shared success.Chapters00:53 — Meet Bob Whalen and HB Global02:35 — Walking into a 94-year-old family business05:50 — Where ESOPs and ETA meet07:39 — Run it like a sports team, not a family10:50 — Bringing culture to life across the group13:26 — Why the "secret sauce" isn't really a secret14:44 — Where the people-first conviction came from19:58 — Spotting cultural fit in an acquisition22:58 — Branding inward: communicating mission daily26:38 — Keeping score and the great game of business28:10 — The one number: return on capital31:02 — Do frontline workers value ownership?33:37 — Why business schools don't teach ESOPs38:19 — Fast round42:11 — Advice for owners on the fenceKey Takeaways✅ An ESOP can start as a practical, tax-efficient deal structure and grow into a genuine cultural strategy.💡 Run the business like a sports team: everyone does their job, and everyone shares what they create.🌟 Culture is what you do, not what you write down. The CEO has to live it first.🎧 Most acquisitions could fetch a higher price elsewhere. Owners choose HB Global to protect their people.✅ Frontline technicians hold rare, valuable skills. The first job is helping them value themselves.💡 Selling for top dollar often leaves owners unhappy. Decide what legacy you actually want.Notable Quotes"It's my Christmas every year when our ESOP values come out. I get a spreadsheet with every single person's value.""If there was anybody who'd be upset about doing the ESOP, it would be me. And I couldn't be more thrilled.""It was a financial solution that started, but it gave me my purpose."LinksBob Whalen on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bob-whalen-4023a21b/HB Global: https://hb-global.comBook — Beyond Your Ownership by Bob Whalen and Jamie DykstraHost, Andy Farquharson: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andyfarquharson/a better monday: https://abettermonday.me
After 400+ employee ownership transitions and over two decades in the space, Ewan Hall has seen what works and what doesn't. In this episode, he walks Andy through the practical realities of EOT transitions in the UK — from the tax recalibration last October to the four pillars every successful transition needs (deal, ownership, governance, culture). Ewan unpacks the concept of "enough" that unlocks seller psychology, the underused role of debt finance, and a deceptively simple framework — informed, consult, consent — that resolves who decides what after the founder steps back. Honest, experienced, and refreshingly free of the EO hype.Chapters(00:00) Welcome and introduction(02:26) The story behind 20+ years in EO(05:53) Why employee owned firms still face succession challenges(07:42) Separating ownership succession from leadership succession(11:17) Why owners choose EO over a trade sale(13:21) The concept of "enough" and the magic number(18:00) The 25% rule: how long it really takes to fund a 100% disposal(22:21) The 2014 tax relief and mainstreaming EO(23:41) October 2024: from 100% to 50% CGT discount(28:34) The missed opportunity around debt finance(32:26) Refinancing the back-end of founder debt(33:26) The four pillars: deal, ownership, governance, culture(37:04) Informed, consult, consent in practice(40:31) Day, year, extremis: stress-testing your structure(42:27) Fast round: leaders, resources, advice(45:00) Where to find EwanKey takeaways💡 Ownership succession and leadership succession run on different timelines — don't conflate them.✅ The conversation about "enough" unlocks every other decision a founder needs to make.🎯 Profit multiple + 25% = roughly the years it'll take to fund a 100% disposal at flat profits.🌟 The four pillars of a healthy transition: the deal, ownership, governance, and culture.💷 EOT tax relief at 50% still saves around 12% — no other UK exit comes close.⚖️ Stress-test your structure across three scenarios: a day, a year, and an emergency.Notable quotes"You don't just stick shares in a trust and call it a day.""Once people get past the concept of enough, they unclench a bit.""I want to be able to drive past this workplace and feel all right about it."Links🔗 Ewan Hall on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ewan-hall-3a7b902a/🔗 Baxendale Employee Ownership: https://baxendaleownership.co.uk🔗 Employee Ownership Association: https://employeeownership.co.uk🔗 Host Andy Farquharson: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andyfarquharson/🔗 a better monday: https://abettermonday.me
Joseph Cureton spent nearly a decade building Obran Cooperative, the first worker-owned cooperative holding company in the US. In 2025, he exited and started something new. Sarvis Health is an ESOP-based roll-up of home care agencies, wrapped in a proprietary AI-enabled operating platform called Sarvis OS. In this conversation, Joseph breaks down why he shifted from co-op to ESOP, what he learned about the "magic" (and the myths) of shared ownership, and why home care is uniquely suited to employee ownership. He also shares how Sarvis is using AI to fix broken workflows, why design partners matter, and the one question every fence-sitting owner should ask themselves.Chapters:(00:00) Welcome and introducing Joseph(01:39) From Obran to Sarvis: co-op to ESOP(07:10) No silver bullet — operations come first(09:26) The real magic of employee ownership(11:05) Home care and the Silver Tsunami(13:29) Going head-to-head with private equity(16:32) Rituals, open-book management, alignment(23:50) Sarvis OS: the three-part rollout(30:53) Investing in tech and people together(34:00) The design partner model(39:30) A five-year vision(43:50) Fast round(46:10) A question for owners on the fenceKey Takeaways:💡 Employee ownership isn't a magic bullet. You still have to be a great operator every day.✅ The magic is a team of "disagreeable givers" aligned around shared outcomes.🌟 Home care fits employee ownership because workers already care deeply about their communities.🎧 A single AI-enabled platform turns ownership engagement into action.✅ Start with the detractors. The loudest critics make the best design partners.Notable Quotes:"There's no silver bullet. And there is some magic.""Clarity is kindness.""In five or ten years, what option would you regret not taking?"Links & Resources:Joseph Cureton: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josephbuilds/Sarvis Health: https://sarvishealth.comObran Cooperative: https://www.obran.coopThe Companies We Keep by John AbramsCollective Courage by Jessica Gordon NembhardHost Andy Farquharson: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andyfarquharson/a better monday: https://abettermonday.me