Rocky Mountain Employee Ownership Center

Rocky Mountain Employee Ownership Center Rocky Moutain Employee Ownership Center champions community wealth building in the Mountain West through succession planning, worker co-ops, & ESOPs.

Whether you’re a business owner preparing to retire and wondering what the options are for your business to carry on, or you’re searching for a new way to do business that better aligns with your values, RMEOC is here to help you move your business forward through employee ownership. We believe that our economy should work for everyone – and broad-based ownership is one of the most effective tools

to make that happen. Employee ownership builds stronger businesses, creates better jobs, and helps develop more sustainable and resilient local economies — and it’s a powerful way to address racial and social inequality

What if a company could never be sold, never be taken over, and never drift from its mission?That's exactly what Organic...
06/12/2026

What if a company could never be sold, never be taken over, and never drift from its mission?

That's exactly what Organically Grown Company (OGC) achieved with a Perpetual Purpose Trust (PPT).

OGC is one of the largest organic produce distributors in the Pacific Northwest. When it came time to plan for the future, they didn't sell to a corporation — they locked their mission permanently:

• The business can never be sold
• Profits are shared with employees and reinvested in the mission
• Workers have voice in governance
• The company's values are protected forever

This is steward ownership in action.

Read the full story: https://www.rmeoc.org/employee-ownership/success-stories/organically-grown-company/

For decades, you've served your rural community. Now you're ready to retire — but what happens to the business, the jobs...
06/11/2026

For decades, you've served your rural community. Now you're ready to retire — but what happens to the business, the jobs, and the town that depends on them?

RMEOC helps rural Colorado business owners transition to employee ownership with:

• Up to 100% funding for conversion costs
• Technical assistance and legal support
• Succession planning guidance
• Ongoing mentorship after the transition

Your employees already know the business. They serve the community every day. Let them carry your legacy forward.

Learn more about rural business funding: https://www.rmeoc.org/funding/rural-businesses/

When Clegg Auto's owners considered retirement, they had a choice: sell to a chain, close the doors, or try something di...
06/10/2026

When Clegg Auto's owners considered retirement, they had a choice: sell to a chain, close the doors, or try something different.

They chose employee ownership — and the results speak for themselves:

• Profits increased 160%
• Workers share in the financial success
• The business stayed local and independent
• Customers kept the team they trust

Clegg Auto became an Employee Ownership Trust (EOT), a model that permanently locks in shared ownership and worker voice.

This is what happens when you invest in your people.

Read the full story: https://www.rmeoc.org/employee-ownership/success-stories/clegg-auto/

When it was time to plan their exit, Clegg Auto's owners chose the road less traveled — and it made all the difference.I...
06/10/2026

When it was time to plan their exit, Clegg Auto's owners chose the road less traveled — and it made all the difference.

Instead of selling to a chain or closing the shop, they became an Employee Ownership Trust (EOT):

• Workers share in profits and build real wealth
• Employees have a voice in how the business runs
• The business stays independent and community-rooted
• Customers keep the team they've trusted for years

An EOT permanently locks in shared ownership — no single person can ever sell the company out from under the workers.

Read Clegg Auto's story: https://www.rmeoc.org/employee-ownership/success-stories/clegg-auto/

06/10/2026

"My mom was a caregiver for 20+ years and worked herself into the grave. Caregivers deserve better."

Deborah Brown, RMEOC's Home Care Cooperative Director, knows the cost of caregiving firsthand. Now she's building something to change it.

The worker-owned home care cooperative will give caregivers:

• Fair, living wages
• Control over their schedules
• Benefits and professional development
• A democratic voice in how care is delivered

This is personal. And it's powerful.

Support the movement: https://www.coloradogives.org/story/rmeoc-home-care-cooperative

06/09/2026

People become ride-share drivers for flexibility. Pick up the kids at 3. Drive mornings only. That's the promise.

But over time, something changes.

Minsun Ji explains: "Algorithm and platform start controlling how you work. And that's when this becomes a social problem."

The companies sell flexibility to attract drivers. But once you're in, there are hidden rules. Accept 75-85 percent of ALL ride requests — no matter how far — or your rating drops. Cancel too many? Your score drops. Want the best tier? You must behave certain ways.

"A lot of workers fall into that. They want the best rating. But with time, it becomes a trap."

This is how platform economy becomes an invisible management system. No boss. No office. No one to complain to when you get deactivated without answers.

That's dehumanization.

Watch: https://youtu.be/PI8homDnRw8

90 years ago, rural communities used co-ops to bring electricity home.On May 20, 1936, the Rural Electrification Act was...
06/08/2026

90 years ago, rural communities used co-ops to bring electricity home.

On May 20, 1936, the Rural Electrification Act was signed into law. At the time, rural America was being left behind by the private market. Farms, homes, and small towns needed power, but the infrastructure was not arriving fast enough.

The answer was not just financing. It was ownership.

Farmers, ranchers, and rural families formed cooperatives, secured federal financing, and built the systems their communities needed. By the 1950s, more than 90% of U.S. farms had electricity.

USDA’s 90th anniversary announcement is a reminder that cooperative ownership is not a niche idea. It helped solve one of the biggest infrastructure challenges in American history. And it is still active today, with USDA reporting $10.4 billion in rural electric generation, transmission, and distribution investments since January 20, 2025.

For RMEOC, that history matters because the same principle applies now: communities can build what markets ignore.

Employee ownership, worker co-ops, ESOPs, and EOTs are tools for keeping wealth, voice, and decision-making closer to the people doing the work.

Read the USDA announcement: https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/USDARD/bulletins/41931f6
Learn more about employee ownership: https://www.rmeoc.org

RNs can help build Colorado's first worker-owned homecare co-op.Colorado Care Cooperative is preparing for licensure and...
06/05/2026

RNs can help build Colorado's first worker-owned homecare co-op.

Colorado Care Cooperative is preparing for licensure and building a regional nursing structure across the Denver Metro, Western Slope, and Southern Colorado.

They are hiring Regional Supervisory Registered Nurses for two roles:

• Regional Lead RN, a part-time to full-time growth role providing ongoing clinical oversight and regional supervision leadership
• PRN Regional Support RN, a flexible coverage role supporting admissions, reassessments, supervisory visits, and incident follow-up

Each RN supports a regional service area covering approximately 3-4 Colorado counties. Compensation is approximately $39-$46/hour, with mileage reimbursement, visit-based rates, on-call stipends, admission assessment differentials, and weekend differentials.

This is clinical leadership inside a different kind of homecare model: a worker-owned cooperative built by care workers to put homecare professionals and the people they serve over industry profits.

Apply by sending a resume to [email protected]. Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis.

The first book in English about social cooperatives is here.Social Cooperatives: How local communities can reclaim contr...
06/04/2026

The first book in English about social cooperatives is here.

Social Cooperatives: How local communities can reclaim control of social care is now available on Kindle for $5, with a paperback edition coming soon.

The research behind the book was sponsored by the Rocky Mountain Employee Ownership Center and the Democracy Policy Network. Elias developed the work in collaboration with Minsun Ji of RMEOC, Matthew Epperson of the Georgia Center for Employee Ownership, and Rebecca Matthew of the University of Georgia School of Social Work.

The introduction is by Nathan Schneider of the MEDLab.

If you care about community ownership, social care, and practical models that give local communities more control, this is worth a look.

Kindle link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0H3CP4K63

What happens when a beloved performance car company is ready to transition?Flyin’ Miata didn’t sell out—they handed the ...
06/04/2026

What happens when a beloved performance car company is ready to transition?

Flyin’ Miata didn’t sell out—they handed the keys to their employees. 🚗💨
With RMEOC’s support, they became a worker-owned business, keeping their culture, team, and innovation alive in western Colorado.

Read how they did it ➡️ https://www.rmeoc.org/success-stories/flyin-miata/

Address

3000 Lawrence Street #21
Denver, CO
80205

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm

Telephone

+13033512003

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